Shloka 3
Karna Reproves Shalya; Brahmin Reports on Bāhlīkas; Shalya’s Universalizing Rebuttal (कर्ण–शल्य संवादः)
एको निवातकवचानहनद् दिव्यकार्मुक: । एक: किरातरूपेण स्थितं शर्वमयोधयत्
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca |
eko nivātakavacān ahanad divya-kārmukaḥ |
ekaḥ kirāta-rūpeṇa sthitaṃ śarvam ayodhayat ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Alone, bearing a celestial bow, he slew the Nivātakavacas; and alone, assuming the guise of a Kirāta, he even fought with Śarva (Śiva) who stood before him.”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
Extraordinary power in the epic is portrayed as arising from disciplined effort and worthiness: a hero’s single-minded resolve, coupled with divine testing and grace, becomes the ethical foundation for wielding celestial weapons responsibly in dharmic war.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra recalls renowned exploits attributed to Arjuna: he destroyed the Nivātakavaca demons single-handedly with a divine bow, and he also fought Śiva, who appeared in the form of a Kirāta, in a celebrated divine encounter that tested and affirmed his valor.