Shloka 4
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 47 — Arjuna’s Deterrent Declaration
Sañjaya’s Report
संशृण्वतस्तस्य दुर्भाषिणो वै दुरात्मन: सूतपुत्रस्य सूत । यो योद्धुमाशंसति मां सदैव मन्दप्रज्ञ: कालपक्वो5तिमूढ:
saṃśṛṇvatastasya durbhāṣiṇo vai durātmanaḥ sūtaputrasya sūta | yo yoddhum āśaṃsati māṃ sadaiva mandaprajñaḥ kālapakvo'timūḍhaḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: „O Wagenlenker, höre, wie ich von jenem übelredenden, bösen Mann spreche—Karna, dem Sohn des Sūta—der unablässig prahlt, er werde stets gegen mich kämpfen, obgleich sein Verstand stumpf ist, seine Zeit zum Tod gereift und er völlig verblendet. Trage meine Worte in der Versammlung der Kauravas Duryodhana, dem Sohn Dhṛtarāṣṭras, vor, damit er sie deutlich vernimmt, zusammen mit den Ministern und allen Königen, die zum Krieg gegen die Pāṇḍavas herbeigerufen wurden.“
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of speech and intention in conflict: abusive talk and arrogant boasting are portrayed as signs of delusion and moral decline, while the reference to kāla (Time/death) frames hubris as self-destructive and ultimately answerable to destiny.
Sañjaya reports a message meant for the Kaurava court: Karṇa is characterized as harsh-tongued and boastful about fighting, and the speaker instructs that these words be conveyed to Duryodhana (with ministers and allied kings present) as the war with the Pāṇḍavas approaches.