Shloka 78
यथोग्ररश्मि: शुचिशुक्रम ध्यग: सुखं विवस्वान् हरते जलौघान् | तथार्जुनो बाणगणान् निरस्य ददाह सेनां तव पार्थिवेन्द्र
yathogra-raśmiḥ śuci-śukra-madhyagaḥ sukhaṁ vivasvān harate jalaughān | tathārjuno bāṇa-gaṇān nirasyā dadāha senāṁ tava pārthivendra rājendra ||
Karna sprach: „Wie die Sonne, die in der lichten Mitte der Jahreszeit mit wilden Strahlen brennt, mühelos die gesammelten Wasser der Erde emporzieht, so begann Arjuna, indem er Pfeilsalven schleuderte, dein Heer zu Asche zu verbrennen, o Herr der Könige.“
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the overwhelming, seemingly unstoppable momentum of martial power in war: when a great force is unleashed, it can operate with the inevitability of nature. Ethically, it also hints at the tragedy of battle—human lives and armies can be consumed as effortlessly as the sun dries up waters—inviting reflection on the cost of kṣatriya violence even when pursued as duty.
Karna describes to his king (addressed as ‘pārthivendra, rājendra’) how Arjuna is attacking: Arjuna releases dense volleys of arrows and is burning/annihilating the opposing army. Karna uses a simile of the blazing sun in mid-season drawing up water to convey the ease and intensity of Arjuna’s destruction.