Shloka 546
अर्जुनस्य शीघ्रप्रयाणं भीम-शकुनियुद्धं च
Arjuna’s Rapid Advance and the Bhīma–Śakuni Encounter
चक्कुः सम तादृशं कर्म यादृशं वै कृतं रणे । कर्णने उस समय रणभूमिमें जैसा पराक्रम किया था, वैसा न तो भीष्म, न द्रोणाचार्य और न आपके दूसरे कोई योद्धा ही कर सके थे
cakṣuḥ sama tādṛśaṃ karma yādṛśaṃ vai kṛtaṃ raṇe | karṇena tasmin samaye raṇabhūmau yathā parākramaḥ kṛtaḥ, tathā na bhīṣmeṇa na droṇācāryeṇa nāpi tava anyaiḥ kaścid yoddhā kartuṃ śakyaḥ |
Sañjaya said: “No deed equal to that—such as was truly accomplished in battle—was performed by anyone else. The valor Karṇa displayed at that time on the battlefield could not be matched: neither Bhīṣma nor Droṇa, nor any other warrior of yours was able to achieve the same.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the Mahābhārata’s ethical tension between admiration for martial excellence and the tragic context of fratricidal war: extraordinary prowess can be acknowledged even when deployed in an unrighteous or catastrophic conflict, reminding the listener to distinguish personal valor from the moral outcome of the war.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, praising Karṇa’s exceptional performance in a particular moment of the battle, stating that neither Bhīṣma nor Droṇa nor any other Kaurava warrior equaled Karṇa’s feat at that time.