Shloka 57
अर्जुनस्य द्रोणिप्रतिघातः कर्णोपसर्पणं च
Arjuna Checks Droṇaputra; Karṇa Advances
तत्रास्त्रवीर्य कर्णस्य लाघवं च महात्मन: । अपश्याम महाभाग तदद्भुतमिवाभवत्,महाभाग! हमने महामना कर्णके अस्त्र-बल और फुर्तीको वहाँ अपनी आँखों देखा था। वह सब कुछ अद्भुत-सा प्रतीत होता था
tatrāstravīryaṁ karṇasya lāghavaṁ ca mahātmanaḥ | apaśyāma mahābhāga tad adbhutam ivābhavat ||
Sañjaya said: “There we witnessed with our own eyes the might of Karṇa’s weapons and the swift agility of that great-souled warrior. O noble one, what we saw appeared almost wondrous.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames battlefield power through the lens of eyewitness testimony: extraordinary skill can inspire awe, yet it is presented as an observed fact rather than moral approval—inviting reflection on how martial excellence and ethical judgment are not automatically identical.
Sañjaya reports to the listener (addressed as “mahābhāga”) that he and others directly witnessed Karṇa’s formidable weapon-prowess and remarkable agility in the battle, and that the spectacle seemed almost miraculous.