Shloka 18
अर्जुनकर्णसंनिपातवर्णनम् / The Convergence of Arjuna and Karṇa
जाग्रत्स्वपंश्व॒ कौन्तेय कर्णमेव सदा हाहम् | पश्यामि तत्र तत्रैव कर्णभूतमिदं जगत्,कुन्तीनन्दन! मैं जागते और सोते समय सदा कर्णको ही देखा करता था। यह सारा जगत् मेरे लिये जहाँ-तहाँ कर्णमय हो रहा था
jāgratsvapnaṃś ca kaunteya karṇam eva sadā aham | paśyāmi tatra tatraiva karṇabhūtam idaṃ jagat ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dijo: «Oh hijo de Kuntī, despierto o dormido, siempre veía sólo a Karṇa. Dondequiera que mirara, todo este mundo me parecía como si se hubiera vuelto Karṇa.»
युधिषछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the moral and emotional weight of war can dominate the mind: even a righteous king like Yudhiṣṭhira becomes haunted by the slain hero, suggesting that victory in dharma-yuddha still carries inner suffering and ethical reflection.
After Karṇa’s fall, Yudhiṣṭhira speaks to a ‘Kaunteya’ (addressing a son of Kuntī, commonly Arjuna) and confesses that Karṇa occupies his awareness in waking and sleep; wherever he looks, he feels the world itself has become ‘Karṇa-filled,’ expressing grief, shock, and fixation on the formidable opponent they have just overcome.