Shloka 35
युधिष्ठिरस्य धनंजय-प्रति गर्हा
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Reproach to Dhanaṃjaya
जनमेजयश्न पाञज्चाल्य: कर्ण विव्याध सायकै:
sañjaya uvāca | janamejayaḥ pāñcālyaḥ karṇaṃ vivyādha sāyakaiḥ | pāñcāla-vīraḥ janamejayaḥ ratha-hasti-aśva-senāṃ saha nītvā sarvataḥ karṇam abhyadravat | taṃ jighāṃsur āvṛtya bāṇaiḥ varāha-karṇaiḥ nārācaiḥ nālīkaiḥ tīkṣṇaiḥ bāṇaiḥ vatsadantaiḥ vipāṭaiḥ kṣurapraiḥ caṭakāmukhaiḥ nānā-vidhaiḥ bhīkaraiḥ astra-śastraiś ca prahāraṃ prārabhata ||
Sañjaya said: Janamejaya of the Pāñcālas pierced Karṇa with volleys of arrows. That Pāñcāla hero, bringing with him a force of chariots, elephants, and horsemen, charged Karṇa from every side. Intent on killing him, he surrounded Karṇa and began to strike him with arrows of many kinds—boar-ear heads, iron darts (nārācas), tubular shafts (nālīkas), razor-edged missiles, calf-tooth points (vatsadantas), cleaving shafts (vipādas), crescent-headed cutters (kṣurapras), parrot-beak heads (caṭakāmukhas)—and with diverse, dreadful weapons, pressing the battle with relentless force.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its starkest form: disciplined, purposeful action in war, where intent (to kill or protect) drives strategy (encirclement) and means (specialized weapons). Ethically, it underscores how martial excellence and determination can intensify violence, reminding the reader that prowess and resolve, when yoked to enmity, rapidly escalate suffering on the battlefield.
Sañjaya reports that Janamejaya, a Pāñcāla warrior, brings a combined force of chariots, elephants, and cavalry to attack Karṇa. He surrounds Karṇa from all sides and begins a concentrated assault using many named varieties of arrows and weapons, aiming to kill him.