Shloka 148
आदि पर्व, अध्याय 67 — गान्धर्वविवाह-समयः
Duḥṣanta–Śakuntalā: Gandharva Marriage and Succession Condition
आमुक्तकवचो वीरो यस्तु जज्ञे महायशा: । स कर्ण इति विख्यात: पृथाया: प्रथम: सुतः,जो महायशस्वी वीर कवच धारण किये हुए ही उत्पन्न हुआ, वह पृथाका प्रथम पुत्र कर्ण नामसे ही सर्वत्र विख्यात था
āmuktakavaco vīro yastu jajñe mahāyaśāḥ | sa karṇa iti vikhyātaḥ pṛthāyāḥ prathamaḥ sutaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: The heroic and greatly renowned one who was born already wearing armor was famed everywhere by the name Karṇa—Pṛthā’s first son.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Extraordinary gifts and public fame do not remove ethical complexity; Karṇa’s divinely marked birth highlights how identity and duty can become morally fraught when origins are hidden or contested.
Vaiśampāyana identifies Karṇa as Pṛthā’s first son and notes that he was born already wearing armor, a sign of exceptional, almost supernatural distinction that establishes his renown.