Shloka 496
स्वयं प्रायात् पार्थवधाय राजन् कृत्वा स्वरूपं विजिधघांसुरुग्र: । राजन! युद्धस्थलमें कर्णके द्वारा इस प्रकार टका-सा उत्तर पाकर वह नागराज रोषपूर्वक उसके इस वचनको सहन न कर सका। उस उग्र सर्पने अपने स्वरूपको प्रकट करके मनमें प्रतिहिंसाकी भावना लेकर पार्थके वधके लिये स्वयं ही उनपर आक्रमण किया
svayaṁ prāyāt pārthavadhāya rājan kṛtvā svarūpaṁ vijighāṁsur ugraḥ |
Karna said: “O King, that fierce serpent, intent on killing Partha, came forward of his own accord. Revealing his true form and burning with the desire to destroy, he launched himself toward Arjuna—driven by wrath and the urge for vengeance amid the battle’s turmoil.”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how unchecked wrath and vengeance drive beings to reveal their most destructive nature, especially in war; it implicitly contrasts impulsive retaliation with the restraint expected by dharma.
Karna narrates that a fierce serpent king, unable to bear the exchange on the battlefield, reveals his true form and independently rushes to kill Arjuna (Partha).