Shloka 14
Śikhaṇḍin’s Transformation, Daśārṇa Verification, and Kubera’s Conditional Curse
Udyoga Parva 193
तन्न जानाति गाड़्ेयो न द्रोणो न च गौतम: । न च द्रोणसुतो राजन् कुत एव तु सूतज:
tan na jānāti gāṅgeyo na droṇo na ca gautamaḥ | na ca droṇasuto rājan kuta eva tu sūtajaḥ ||
“O King, this is not known even to Bhīṣma, the son of the Gaṅgā; nor to Droṇa; nor to Gautama (Kṛpa). Nor does Droṇa’s son Aśvatthāman know it. How then could the sūta-born Karṇa possibly know it?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse argues from recognized authority: if even the foremost elders and masters do not know a certain matter, it is unreasonable to claim that a lesser or socially-disputed figure knows it. Ethically, it highlights how appeals to hierarchy and reputation are used to validate (or dismiss) claims in political counsel.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses the king and emphasizes that the matter at hand is unknown even to Bhīṣma, Droṇa, Kṛpa, and Aśvatthāman; therefore, Karṇa cannot be expected to know it. The statement functions as a pointed rhetorical move within the tense pre-war deliberations of the Udyoga Parva.