Shloka 37
कथं नु पापोदयमपेतध धर्म: सूतात्मज: समरेउद्य प्रसहा । पज्चालानां योधमुख्याननेकान् निजघ्निवांस्तव जिष्णो समक्षम्
kathaṃ nu pāpodayam apetadharmaḥ sūtātmajaḥ samare ’dyaprasahā | pāñcālānāṃ yodhamukhyān anekān nijaghnivāṃs tava jiṣṇoḥ samakṣam ||
Sañjaya dijo: «¿Cómo es que el hijo de un auriga—en quien ha brotado el pecado y que se ha apartado del dharma—hoy, en la batalla, con fuerza temeraria, ha dado muerte a muchos de los más destacados guerreros de Pāñcāla ante los propios ojos de Jiṣṇu (Arjuna), el rival de tu hijo?» La escena muestra la sombría inversión moral de la guerra: la destreza y la furia parecen triunfar aun cuando la rectitud queda eclipsada.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension of war: martial success can occur even when dharma is eclipsed. Sañjaya’s astonishment frames Karṇa’s violent effectiveness as a sign of adharma’s temporary ascendancy, reminding the listener that battlefield outcomes do not automatically validate moral rightness.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Karṇa, fighting with force and disregard for dharma, has slain many leading Pāñcāla warriors, and that this has happened in Arjuna’s very presence—underscoring both Karṇa’s ferocity and the intensity of the ongoing battle.