Shloka 2

Devanagari script

कर्ण तु निहतं दृष्ट्वा शत्रुभि: परमाहवे । भीता दिशो व्यकीर्यन्त तावका: क्षतविक्षता:,शत्रुओंने उस महायुद्धमें वैकर्तन कर्णको मार डाला है, यह देखकर आपके सैनिक भयभीत हो उठे थे। उनका सारा शरीर घावोंसे भर गया था। इसलिये वे भागकर सम्पूर्ण दिशाओंमें बिखर गये

Transliteration

karṇaṃ tu nihataṃ dṛṣṭvā śatrubhiḥ paramāhave | bhītā diśo vyakīryanta tāvakāḥ kṣatavikṣatāḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: „Als sie sahen, dass Karṇa in jener furchtbarsten Schlacht von den Feinden erschlagen worden war, wurden deine Krieger—verwundet und zerschlagen—vom Schrecken gepackt und zerstreuten sich fliehend nach allen Seiten. Der Sturz ihres vornehmsten Helden brach ihren Mut, und Panik überkam das Heer.“

Word by Word

कर्णम्Karna

तुbut/indeed

निहतम्slain

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

शत्रुभिःby the enemies

परमाहवेin the great battle

भीताःfrightened

दिशःdirections

व्यकीर्यन्तscattered (were scattered)

तावकाःyour (men)/belonging to you

क्षतविक्षताःwounded and mangled

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Karṇa

śatravaḥ (enemies)

tāvakāḥ (Kaurava forces)

paramāhava (the great battle)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how the fall of a principal protector can collapse collective courage: when reliance rests on a single champion, fear spreads quickly. Ethically, it underscores the fragility of morale in war and the consequences of attachment to power rather than steadiness in dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Karṇa has been killed by the enemy in the fierce battle. On seeing this, the Kaurava soldiers—already wounded—panic and disperse in all directions.