Shloka 75
स वत्सदन्तै: पृथुपीनवक्षा: समाचित: सो<थिरथिर्विभाति । सुपुष्पिताशोकपलाशशाल्मलि- य॑थाचलक्षन्दनकाननायुत:,चौड़े और मोटे वक्ष:स्थलवाले अधिरथपुत्र कर्णका शरीर वत्सदन्तनामक बाणोंसे व्याप्त होकर खिले हुए अशोक, पलाश, सेमल और चन्दनवनसे युक्त पर्वतके समान सुशोभित होने लगा
sa vatsadantaiḥ pṛthupīnavakṣāḥ samācitaḥ so 'thirathir vibhāti | supuṣpitāśokapalāśaśālmalī-yathācalakṣandanakānanāyutaḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: Da war Karṇa, der Sohn Adhirathas—breit und voll an der Brust—über und über mit „Vatsadanta“-Pfeilen bedeckt und erschien dennoch strahlend, wie ein Berg, geschmückt mit Sandelholz-Hainen und dem blühenden Laub von Aśoka, Palāśa und Śālmalī.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya ideal of steadfastness under suffering: even when wounded and surrounded by instruments of death, a warrior is praised for maintaining composure and radiance. Ethically, it reflects the epic’s tension between the horror of violence and the cultural valorization of courage and endurance in righteous combat.
Sañjaya reports that Karṇa’s body has been thoroughly pierced and covered by ‘Vatsadanta’ arrows. Despite the wounds, Karṇa appears splendid, and the poet uses a vivid nature-simile: he looks like a mountain adorned with blossoming forests—turning the battlefield image into a striking, tragic beauty.