Shloka 81
कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira
यदा मान॑ं लभते माननार्ह- स्तदा स वै जीवति जीवलोके । यदावमानं लभते महान्तं तदा जीवन्मृत इत्युच्यते सः,इस जीवजगत्में माननीय पुरुष जबतक सम्मान पाता है, तभीतक वह वास्तवमें जीवित है। जब वह महान् अपमान पाने लगता है, तब वह जीते-जी मरा हुआ कहलाता है
yadā mānaṁ labhate mānanārhas tadā sa vai jīvati jīvaloke | yadāvamānaṁ labhate mahāntaṁ tadā jīvanmṛta ity ucyate saḥ ||
Vāyu said: “So long as a person worthy of honor receives honor, he truly lives in this world of the living. But when he comes to receive great humiliation, he is spoken of as ‘dead while still alive.’”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
A person’s lived dignity is closely tied to honor: rightful respect sustains one’s social and inner life, while profound humiliation is portrayed as a ‘living death.’ The verse highlights the moral and psychological power of public regard and the harm caused by severe dishonor.
Vāyudeva delivers a reflective maxim within the Karṇa Parva context, using a general ethical statement rather than describing a battlefield action: he frames honor and humiliation as measures of a person’s true ‘life’ in society.