Shloka 20
'सूतपुत्र! तुम महापराक्रमी राजकुमार अर्जुनका आह्वान न करो। जैसे वनमें मांस- भक्षणसे तृप्त हुआ गीदड़ महाबली सिंहके पास जाकर नष्ट हो जाता है, उसी प्रकार तुम भी अर्जुनसे भिड़कर विनाशके गर्तमें न गिरो ।। ईषादन्तं महानागं प्रभिन्नकरटामुखम् | शशको ह्वयसे युद्धे कर्ण पार्थ धनंजयम्,“कर्ण! जैसे कोई खरगोश ईषादण्डके समान दाँतोंवाले महान् मदस्रावी गजराजको अपने साथ युद्धके लिये बुलाता हो, उसी प्रकार तुम भी कुन्तीपुत्र धनंजयका रफक्षेत्रमें आह्वान करते हो
sañjaya uvāca |
sūtaputra! tvaṃ mahāparākramaṃ rājakumāram arjunam āhvānaṃ na kuru | yathā vane māṃsa-bhakṣaṇena tṛptaḥ śṛgālo mahābalinaṃ siṃhaṃ samīpya gatvā naśyati, tathā tvam api arjunena saha saṃyujya vināśa-garthe mā patāḥ ||
īṣādantaṃ mahānāgaṃ prabhinnakaraṭāmukham |
śaśako hvayase yuddhe karṇa pārtha dhanañjayam ||
Sañjaya said: “O son of a charioteer, do not challenge the mighty prince Arjuna. Just as a jackal, satiated by eating flesh in the forest, approaches a powerful lion and is destroyed, so too do not, by clashing with Arjuna, fall into the pit of ruin. O Karna, you are calling to battle Kunti’s son Dhananjaya—like a hare summoning a great elephant with tusks like a pole and a face streaming with musth.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse cautions against reckless pride and misjudging one’s opponent. It frames ethical counsel in war: courage must be guided by discernment, otherwise it becomes self-destructive.
Sanjaya addresses Karna, urging him not to challenge Arjuna. He uses vivid animal similes—jackal vs. lion, hare vs. musth-elephant—to portray the danger of Karna provoking a vastly formidable adversary.