Shloka 20
न हि साम्ना न दानेन न भेदेन च पाण्डवा: । शकक््या: साधयितुं तस्माद् विक्रमेणैव ताज्जहि,न सामसे, न दानसे और न भेदकी नीतिसे पाण्डवोंको वशमें किया जा सकता है। अतः उन्हें पराक्रमसे ही नष्ट करो
na hi sāmnā na dānena na bhedena ca pāṇḍavāḥ | śakyāḥ sādhayituṃ tasmād vikrameṇaiva tān jahi ||
Karna said: “The Pāṇḍavas cannot be brought under control—neither by conciliation, nor by gifts, nor by sowing dissension. Therefore, destroy them only by valor.”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts the traditional diplomatic strategies—conciliation (sāma), gifts (dāna), and division (bheda)—with a final resort: force (vikrama/daṇḍa). Karna’s counsel asserts that the Pāṇḍavas will not yield to negotiation or manipulation, so he advocates a valor-based, violent solution, highlighting the ethical tension between diplomacy and aggression.
Karna is giving strategic counsel regarding how to deal with the Pāṇḍavas. He dismisses non-violent political methods as ineffective and urges their destruction through martial prowess, reflecting an escalation toward open conflict.