Shloka 43
अर्जुनकर्णसंनिपातवर्णनम् / The Convergence of Arjuna and Karṇa
यद् दर्पपूर्ण: स सुयोधनोस्मा- नुदीक्षते कर्णसमाश्रयेण । कच्चित् त्वया सोड्द्य समाश्रयो5स्य भग्नः पराक्रम्य सुयोधनस्य,कर्णका आश्रय लेकर दुर्योधन जो बड़े घमंडमें भरकर हमलोगोंकी ओर देखा करता था। क्या तुमने दुर्योधनके उस महान् आश्रयको आज पराक्रम करके नष्ट कर दिया?
yad darpapūrṇaḥ sa suyodhanosmān udīkṣate karṇasamāśrayeṇa | kaccit tvayā so 'dya samāśrayo 'sya bhagnaḥ parākramya suyodhanasya ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “That Suyodhana, swollen with pride, used to look upon us with contempt because he leaned upon Karṇa for support. Have you today, by your valor, shattered that very great support of Suyodhana?”
युधिषछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral fragility of pride that depends on borrowed strength: Duryodhana’s arrogance is portrayed as sustained by reliance on Karṇa. Ethically, it suggests that adharma-backed confidence collapses when its external prop is removed, while true steadiness should rest on dharma rather than on a single powerful ally.
In the Karṇa Parva battle context, Yudhiṣṭhira questions whether the warrior he addresses has, through valor, broken Duryodhana’s chief support—Karṇa—because Duryodhana had been emboldened to scorn the Pāṇḍavas precisely due to his dependence on Karṇa’s prowess.