Shloka 11
नैतादृशं भारत युद्धमासीद् यथा तु कर्णार्जुनयोर्ब भूव । ग्रसस््तौ हि कर्णेन समेत्य कृष्णा- वन्ये च सर्वे तव शत्रवो ये
naitādṛśaṃ bhārata yuddham āsīd yathā tu karṇārjunayor babhūva | grasastau hi karṇena sametya kṛṣṇā anye ca sarve tava śatravo ye ||
Sañjaya said: “O Bhārata, never before was there a battle like the one that took place between Karṇa and Arjuna. For Karṇa, charging in, all but seized Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna—and with them all the other foes of yours who were present—bringing them to the brink of mortal peril; yet no decisive result came of it.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the terrifying intensity of heroic combat and the limits of mere martial prowess: even when a warrior seems to bring opponents to the edge of death, the final outcome depends on larger forces—strategy, destiny, and the moral-epic order that governs the war.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the duel between Karṇa and Arjuna was unprecedented in ferocity. Karṇa’s assault nearly overwhelmed Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna (and by extension the Pāṇḍava side present), placing them in extreme danger, yet it did not yield a decisive victory.