Shloka 503
अर्जुनस्य शीघ्रप्रयाणं भीम-शकुनियुद्धं च
Arjuna’s Rapid Advance and the Bhīma–Śakuni Encounter
शोणिताशभ्युक्षिताड्स्य रुद्रस्येवोर्जितं महत् इन वीरोंके प्राण लेते समय रक्तसे भीगे अंगोंवाले सूतपुत्र कर्णका शरीर प्राणियोंका संहार करनेवाले भगवान् रुद्रके विशाल शरीरकी भाँति देदीप्यमान हो रहा था
śoṇitāśabhyukṣitāṅgasya rudrasyevorjitaṁ mahat
Sañjaya dijo: Cuando la vida lo abandonaba, Karṇa —el hijo del auriga—, con los miembros empapados de sangre, resplandecía con un fulgor feroz y majestuoso, como la vasta y poderosa forma de Rudra, el destructor de los seres.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s tension between the glory of warrior-duty and the horror of war: even in a blood-soaked death, a great fighter can be portrayed with awe, yet the imagery also forces recognition of the destructive reality that such ‘glory’ entails.
Sañjaya describes Karṇa at the moment of dying: his body is covered in blood, yet he appears radiant and formidable, likened to Rudra’s vast, powerful form—an image that elevates the scene’s intensity and marks Karṇa’s end as momentous.