Shloka 30
काकोपमोपदेशः
The Crow-and-Swan Exemplum as Counsel to Karṇa
तमुद्यतगं दृष्टवा दण्डहस्तमिवान्तकम्
tam udyataṃ dṛṣṭvā daṇḍahastam ivāntakam | daṇḍadhārī yamarājaka-samaḥ sa gadām udyamya dṛṣṭaḥ | dharmarājena ca tava putre ’tyanta-vegaśālinī mahāśaktir nipātitā | sā prajvalitā guru-ulkā-samā dīpyamānā babhūva ||
Sañjaya said: Seeing him standing with his weapon raised—like Death himself, staff in hand, resembling Yama the king of justice—Dharma-rāja struck your son with a mighty śakti-weapon of tremendous speed. That blazing missile shone brilliantly, like a great flaming meteor, as it sped to its mark.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames battlefield violence within the moral imagery of daṇḍa (punishment) and Yama (justice): even in war, action is portrayed as accountable and ethically charged—power is legitimate when aligned with dharma and the restoration of order.
Sañjaya describes a combat moment: a warrior appears terrifying like Death/Yama with raised weaponry, and Dharmarāja (Yudhiṣṭhira) responds by hurling a blazing, fast mahāśakti at Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son, shining like a great meteor.