Shloka 18
Nārada’s Account of the Kaliṅga Svayaṃvara: Duryodhana’s Seizure and Karṇa’s Escort
कर्णने एक-एक बाणसे उन सभी आक्रमणकारी नरेशोंके धनुष और बाण-समूहोंको भूतलपर काट गिराया ।। ततो विधनुष:ः कांश्ित् कांश्रिदुद्यतकार्मुकान् । कांश्रिच्चोद्वहतो बाणान् रथशक्तिगदास्तथा
tato vidhanuṣaḥ kāṁścit kāṁścid udyata-kārmukān | kāṁś cic codvahato bāṇān ratha-śakti-gadās tathā ||
Then he left some of them without bows; others he struck down even as they stood with bows raised. Some he checked while they were lifting their arrows, and likewise he dealt with those bearing chariot-spears and maces—breaking the attackers’ momentum and stripping them of the means to harm. The scene underscores disciplined prowess that neutralizes violence by disarming rather than merely slaughtering.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power guided by dharma can aim first at preventing harm—by disarming and stopping aggression—rather than indulging in needless destruction; mastery is shown in controlled, purposeful force.
A formidable warrior (described by Nārada) rapidly neutralizes multiple attackers: some are left without bows, others are struck while raising bows or lifting arrows, and even those wielding chariot-spears and maces are checked and disarmed.