Shloka 12
आशास्ते च सदा सूत पुत्रो दुर्योधनो मम । कर्णो जेष्यति संग्रामे समस्तान् पाण्डवानिति,संजय! मेरा बेटा दुर्योधन सदा यही आशा करता है कि कर्ण संग्राममें समस्त पाण्डवोंको जीत लेगा
āśāste ca sadā sūtaputro duryodhano mama | karṇo jeṣyati saṅgrāme samastān pāṇḍavān iti ||
Sañjaya said: “My son Duryodhana continually clings to this hope: ‘Karna will triumph in battle and defeat all the Pāṇḍavas.’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral danger of clinging to hope grounded in mere force and personal attachment. Duryodhana’s expectation that Karṇa will ‘defeat all the Pāṇḍavas’ reflects a mindset that seeks victory as an end in itself, rather than examining whether the cause is righteous; it points to how desire and partiality can distort judgment in dharmic crises.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Duryodhana persistently expects Karṇa to prevail in the ongoing war and overcome the Pāṇḍavas. It situates Duryodhana’s morale and strategy in his reliance on Karṇa as the decisive warrior in the Drona Parva context.