Shloka 113
महत्या सेनया तस्थौ नानाजनपदोत्थया । पुच्छभागमें अपने पुत्र, जाति-भाई तथा कुटुम्बके बन्धु-बान्धवोंसहित भिन्न-भिन्न देशोंकी विशाल सेना साथ लिये विकर्तनपुत्र कर्ण खड़ा था
mahatyā senayā tasthau nānājanapadotthayā | pucchabhāge meṁ āpane putra, jāti-bhāī tathā kuṭumbake bandhu-bāndhavõsahita bhinna-bhinna deśõkī viśāla senā sātha liye vikartanaputra karṇa khaṛā thā |
Sañjaya said: At the rear of the host stood Karṇa, son of Vikartana, supported by a vast army drawn from many regions. With him were his own sons, his kinsmen, and the friends and allies of his clan—showing how war gathers not only warriors but whole networks of family loyalty and obligation into a single, fateful alignment.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how warfare is sustained by bonds of kinship and regional alliances: personal loyalty and clan obligation can mobilize vast forces, raising ethical tension between familial duty and the destructive consequences of collective conflict.
Sañjaya describes the Kaurava battle-array: Karṇa is positioned toward the rear (pucchabhāga), standing with a large contingent drawn from many lands, accompanied by his sons and allied relatives—signaling his strength and the breadth of support behind him.