Shloka 64

Devanagari script

अपराल्ने5पराह्नो5स्य सूतपुत्रस्य मारिष | छिन्नमञज्जलिकेनाजौ सोत्सेधमपतच्छिर:,माननीय नरेश! दान देते समय जो दूसरे दिनके लिये वादा नहीं करता था, उस सूतपुत्र कर्णका अंजलिक नामक बाणसे कटा हुआ देहसहित मस्तक अपराह्नकालमें धराशायी हो गया

Transliteration

aparāhṇe 'parāhṇo 'sya sūtaputrasya māriṣa | chinnam añjalikena ājau sotsedham apatach chiraḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: O venerable one, in the late afternoon, the head of that son of a charioteer—Karna—was cut off in the battle by the Añjalika arrow and fell to the ground along with its severed portion.

Word by Word

अपराह्णेin the afternoon

अपराह्णःthe afternoon (time)

अस्यof him

सूतपुत्रस्यof the charioteer’s son (Karna)

मारिषO noble one / O sir

छिन्नम्cut off

अञ्जलिकेनwith the Anjalika (arrow)

अजौin battle

सोत्सेधम्together with the trunk/body

अपतत्fell down

शिरःthe head

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Karna (Sūtaputra)

Añjalika (arrow/missile)

battlefield (āja)

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse juxtaposes Karna’s famed virtue of immediate giving with the stark finality of death in war, suggesting that personal dharma and reputation endure as moral context even when the battlefield brings irreversible consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports that in the late afternoon Karna is struck by the Añjalika arrow; his head is severed and falls on the battlefield, marking his death.