Shloka 73
तथेति चोकक्त्वा त्वरिता: सम तेअ<र्जुनं जिघांसवो वीरतरा: समभ्ययु:,शरैश्न॒ जध्नुर्युधि तं महारथा धनंजयं कर्णनिदेशकारिण: । तब “बहुत अच्छा” कहकर वे अत्यन्त वीर सैनिक बड़ी उतावलीके साथ अर्जुनको मार डालनेके लिये एक साथ आगे बढ़े। कर्णकी आज्ञाका पालन करनेवाले वे महारथी योद्धा युद्धस्थलमें बाणोंद्वारा अर्जुनको चोट पहुँचाने लगे
tatheti coktvā tvaritāḥ sametārjunaṁ jighāṁsavo vīratarāḥ samabhyayuḥ | śaraiś ca jaghnur yudhi taṁ mahārathā dhanañjayaṁ karṇa-nideśa-kāriṇaḥ ||
Saying, “So be it,” those exceedingly valiant warriors, eager and hurrying, surged forward together to slay Arjuna. Obeying Karṇa’s command, the great chariot-fighters struck Dhanañjaya on the battlefield with volleys of arrows—an image of disciplined loyalty turned into relentless violence amid the moral pressure of war.
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how disciplined obedience and martial valor, prized in kṣatriya culture, can become ethically fraught when directed toward killing; it invites reflection on the tension between loyalty to a commander and the destructive momentum of war.
After assenting (“so be it”), Karṇa’s allied great warriors rush forward together with the intent to kill Arjuna and begin striking him in battle with showers of arrows, acting explicitly under Karṇa’s orders.