Shloka 16
कृपकर्णसंवादः
Kṛpa’s Counsel to Karṇa on Deśa-Kāla and Coordinated Strategy
उत्तराभ्यां फल्गुनीभ्यां नक्षत्राभ्यामहं दिवा | जातो हिमवत: पृष्ठे तेन मां फाल्गुनं विदुः,संग्राममें युद्ध करते समय मेरे रथमें सोनेके बख्तरसे सजे हुए श्वेत रंगके घोड़े जोते जाते हैं, इसलिये मेरा नाम “श्वेतवाहन” हुआ है तथा हिमालयके शिखरपर उत्तराफाल्गुनी नक्षत्रमें दिनके समय मेरा जन्म हुआ था; इसलिये मुझे 'फाल्गुन” कहते हैं
uttarābhyāṃ phalgunībhyāṃ nakṣatrābhyām ahaṃ divā | jāto himavataḥ pṛṣṭhe tena māṃ phālgunaṃ viduḥ ||
Arjuna said: “I was born by day under the twin Phalgunī constellations—Uttarā and Phalgunī—upon the heights of the Himavat. Therefore people know me by the name ‘Phālguna.’”
अर्जुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how names and epithets in the Mahābhārata often preserve meaningful origins—here, Arjuna’s epithet ‘Phālguna’ is tied to his birth under the Phalgunī lunar mansions. It underscores the epic’s concern with identity grounded in remembered causes rather than mere labels.
Arjuna is identifying himself by giving the traditional reason for one of his well-known epithets. In the Virāṭa narrative context, such self-identification supports recognition and establishes credibility before action in the impending conflict.