Shloka 216

कर्णस्य सेनापत्याभिषेकः | Karṇa’s Consecration as Commander-in-Chief

Devanagari script

कृत्वा नसुकरं कर्म गता वैवस्वतक्षयम्‌ । प्रजानाथ! और भी बहुत-से पराक्रमी नरेश आपकी सेनाका सामना करते हुए दुष्कर पराक्रम करके यमलोकमें जा पहुँचे हैं

Transliteration

kṛtvā na sukaraṃ karma gatā vaivasvatakṣayam | prajānātha! aur bhī bahut-se parākramī nareśa āpakī senā kā sāmnā karate hue duṣkara parākrama karke yamalokamẽ jā pahũce haĩ |

Translation

Sañjaya said: “Having performed deeds not easy to accomplish, many mighty kings have gone to the abode of Vaivasvata (Yama). O lord of peoples, many other valiant rulers too, while confronting your army, displayed arduous heroism and reached Yama’s realm.”

Word by Word

• कृत्वा: having done
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (absolutive/gerund)

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• सुकरम्: easy
• सुकरम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुकर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• कर्म: deed, act
• कर्म: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• गताः: gone, reached
• गताः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle) used predicatively, Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• वैवस्वतक्षयम्: the abode/realm of Vaivasvata (Yama), i.e., Yama's world
• वैवस्वतक्षयम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वैवस्वतक्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• प्रजानाथ: O lord of subjects/people (O king)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रजानाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Prajānātha (addressed king, i.e., Dhṛtarāṣṭra)
• Vaivasvata (Yama)
• Vaivasvatakṣaya (abode of Yama)
• Yamaloka
• kings (nareśāḥ)
• army (senā)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s war-ethic: in the kṣatriya context, confronting an enemy army demands extraordinary courage, and death in such arduous action is portrayed as the inevitable consequence of heroic engagement with mortal stakes.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to the king (Dhṛtarāṣṭra) that many powerful rulers, while facing his side’s army, performed difficult feats of valor and consequently fell in battle—described as reaching Yama’s realm (Vaivasvata’s abode).