Shloka 11
कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira
समक्ष तव गोविन्द न तत् क्षन्तुमिहोत्सहे | तस्मादेनं वधिष्यामि राजानं धर्मभीरुकम्,“जो मुझसे यह कह दे कि तुम अपना गाण्डीव धनुष दूसरेको दे दो, उसका मैं सिर काट लूँगा।' मैंने मन-ही-मन यह प्रतिज्ञा कर रखी है। अनन्त पराक्रमी गोविन्द! आपके सामने ही इन महाराजने मुझसे वह बात कही है, अतः मैं इन्हें क्षमा नहीं कर सकता; इन धर्मभीरु नरेशका वध करूँगा
samakṣa tava govinda na tat kṣantum ihotsahe | tasmād enaṃ vadhiṣyāmi rājānaṃ dharmabhīrukam ||
Sañjaya said: “O Govinda, right before you I cannot bring myself to forgive that here. Therefore I shall kill this king, timid in the name of dharma.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical danger of letting a personal vow and wounded pride override forbearance (kṣamā), even in the presence of divine counsel (Govinda). It also critiques ‘dharma’ when it becomes a label for timidity or avoidance, showing how moral language can be weaponized in anger.
In the Karṇa Parva context, a heated exchange occurs about the Gāṇḍīva bow; the speaker (as framed by Sañjaya’s narration) declares that, since the offending statement was made in Kṛṣṇa’s presence, it cannot be forgiven and the ‘dharmabhīruka’ king must be slain—escalating an internal conflict within the Pāṇḍava side amid the war.