Shloka 14
Adhyāya 141 — Night duels: Śaineya and Bhūriśravas; Droṇi and Ghaṭotkaca; Bhīma and Duryodhana
कर्णस्ततो महाराज पाण्डवं नवभि: शरै: । आजपघानोरससि क्रुद्धः क्ुद्धरूपं परंतप,शत्रुओंको संताप देनेवाले महाराज! तब कर्णने कुपित हो क्रोधमें भरे हुए पाण्डुपुत्र भीमसेनकी छातीमें नौ बाण मारे
karṇas tato mahārāja pāṇḍavaṁ navabhiḥ śaraiḥ | ājaghānorasi kruddhaḥ kruddharūpaḥ parantapa ||
Sañjaya said: Then, O great king, Karṇa—wrathful and terrible in his anger—struck the Pāṇḍava (Bhīmasena) on the chest with nine arrows.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger intensifies conflict even within a rule-bound warrior code: martial duty (kṣatriya-dharma) demands steadfastness, yet unchecked wrath (krodha) makes combat harsher and more destructive, testing self-control alongside strength.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Karṇa, inflamed with anger, shoots Bhīmasena in the chest with nine arrows—an exchange in the ongoing Kurukṣetra battle, emphasizing Karṇa’s ferocity and Bhīma’s endurance.