Shloka 80
जिघांसुभिस्तान् कुशल: शरोत्तमान् महाहवे सम्प्रहितान् प्रयत्नतः । शरै: प्रचिच्छेद स पाण्डवस्त्वरन् पराभिनद् वक्षसि चेषुभिस्त्रिभि:
jighāṃsubhis tān kuśalaḥ śarottamān mahāhave samprahitān prayatnataḥ | śaraiḥ praciccheda sa pāṇḍavas tvaran parābhinad vakṣasi ceṣubhis tribhiḥ ||
Karna sprach: In jener großen Schlacht zerschnitt Arjuna, der Pāṇḍava, kundig im Krieg, mit eigenen Pfeilen sogleich jene vortrefflichen Geschosse, die von kriegslüsternen Kämpfern mit entschlossenem Aufwand abgeschossen worden waren. Dann, den Angriff vorantreibend, traf er jeden von ihnen mit drei Pfeilen in die Brust.
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its stark battlefield form: when attacked with lethal intent, a warrior must respond with alertness, skill, and decisive force. Ethical conduct here is not sentimental non-violence, but disciplined competence and duty-bound action within the rules of war.
Karna describes Arjuna’s rapid counter: he intercepts and cuts the incoming, well-aimed arrows shot by would-be killers, and then immediately retaliates by piercing their chests with three arrows each, asserting dominance in the exchange.