Shloka 2
कर्णेन्द्रविनिमयः
Karna–Indra Exchange of Kavaca-Kuṇḍala for the Vāsavī-Śakti
मा शुचः पुरुषव्याप्र क्षत्रियोडसि परंतप । बाहुवीयश्िते मार्गे वर्तसे दीप्तनिर्णये,शत्रुओंको संताप देनेवाले पुरुषसिंह! तुम क्षत्रिय हो, शोक न करो। तुम तो उस मार्गपर चल रहे हो, जहाँ केवल अपने बाहुबलका भरोसा किया जाता है तथा जहाँ अभीष्ट फलकी प्राप्ति प्रत्यक्ष एवं असंदिग्ध है
mā śucaḥ puruṣavyāghra kṣatriyo 'si parantapa | bāhuvīryāśrite mārge vartase dīptanirṇaye ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “Do not grieve, tiger among men; you are a kṣatriya, a scorcher of foes. You are walking the path that rests upon the strength of one’s own arms—a course whose intended result is clear and decisive.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
A kṣatriya should not collapse into grief when duty calls; one must act with courage and steadiness, relying on valor and making clear, decisive choices aligned with one’s role.
The sage Mārkaṇḍeya addresses a warrior figure with honorific epithets and consoles him, urging him to abandon sorrow and continue on the warrior’s path, where action and outcome are to be faced directly and decisively.