Shloka 77
कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira
अतत्त्वमेतेन सरोषमुक्तो दुःखान्वितेनेदमयुक्तरूपम् । अकोपितो होष यदि सम संख्ये कर्ण न हन्यादिति चाब्रवीत् सः
atattvam etena saroṣam ukto duḥkhānvitene dam ayukta-rūpam | akopito hoṣa yadi sama-saṅkhye karṇa na hanyād iti cābravīt saḥ ||
Vāyu sprach: „Diese unziemlichen Worte wurden im Zorn von einem vom Kummer Geplagten gesprochen und stehen nicht im Einklang mit der Wahrheit. Er dachte auch: ‘Wenn Arjuna nicht zum Zorn gereizt wird, wird er Karṇa im ebenbürtigen Kampf nicht erschlagen können.’ Auch aus diesem Grund hat er solche Worte geäußert.“
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Grief and anger can distort speech away from truth and propriety; in war, people may deliberately provoke emotions to gain advantage, but such tactics are ethically questionable and should be recognized as arising from passion rather than dharma.
Vāyu explains that certain harsh, unfitting statements were spoken out of sorrow and anger, and that the speaker’s strategic intent was to inflame Arjuna—believing that without provoking him, Arjuna would not be able to slay Karṇa in battle.