Mahabharata (Gita Press) 11.21.8 - Stree Parva, Adhyaya 21, Shloka 8
अध्याय २१ — गान्धार्या वैकर्तनदर्शनम्
Gāndhārī’s Viewing of Vaikartana/Karṇa
अनाधुृष्य: परैर्युद्धे शत्रुभिर्मघवानिव । युगान्ताग्निरिवार्चिष्मान् हिमवानिव निश्चल:ः
anādṛṣyaḥ parair yuddhe śatrubhir maghavān iva | yugāntāgnir ivārciṣmān himavān iva niścalaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: In battle he was unassailable by others, like Maghavān (Indra) against his foes; blazing like the fire at the end of an age, and immovable like Himavān (the Himalaya). Such was that hero Karṇa—who had become a refuge for Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son Duryodhana—now lies slain, felled like a tree broken by a storm. The passage underscores the tragic reversal of war: even the mightiest protector, steadfast and radiant, is brought down, leaving behind grief, moral reckoning, and the stark impermanence of worldly power.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the impermanence of strength and status: even one who seems invincible and steadfast can fall. Ethically, it intensifies the Strī-parvan mood of lamentation and reflection—war consumes protectors and protected alike, forcing survivors to confront the moral cost of ambition and enmity.
Vaiśampāyana describes Karṇa’s former battlefield might through grand similes (Indra-like, end-of-age fire, Himalaya-like) and then states the reversal: Karṇa, who served as Duryodhana’s chief refuge and support, has been slain and lies fallen like a storm-toppled tree.
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