Shloka 39
त्वया क्षिप्तांश्षाग्रसद् बाणसंघा- नाश्चर्यमेतत् प्रतिभाति मेडद्य । कृष्णापरिक्लेशमनुस्मर त्वं यथाब्रवीत् षण्ढतिलान् सम वाच:
sañjaya uvāca |
tvayā kṣiptāṁś cāgrasad bāṇasaṅghān āścaryam etat pratibhāti me 'dya |
kṛṣṇāparikleśam anusmara tvaṁ yathābravīt ṣaṇḍhatilān samaṁ vācaḥ ||
Sañjaya dijo: «Que haya destruido las densas descargas de flechas que tú lanzaste—hoy me parece algo verdaderamente asombroso. Recuerda, oh Savyasācin Arjuna, los tormentos infligidos a Kṛṣṇā (Draupadī) en la asamblea de los Kaurava. Recuerda cómo este hijo de sūta, de mente pecaminosa y alma perversa, habló sin temor, llamándonos “impotentes como semillas de sésamo vacías”, y arrojó muchas palabras ásperas y cortantes. Con todo eso presente, mata pronto en batalla al pecador Karṇa.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames remembrance of past injustice—especially Draupadī’s humiliation—as a moral spur to decisive action in a dharma-conflict. It highlights how dishonor and cruel speech are not trivial; they create ethical debts that, within the epic’s kṣatriya framework, demand accountability on the battlefield.
Sañjaya reports and intensifies the moment: Arjuna’s arrow volleys have been countered, which astonishes the speaker. He urges Arjuna to recall Karṇa’s earlier insults and the suffering inflicted on Draupadī in the Kuru court, and to use that memory to resolve to kill Karṇa swiftly in the ongoing battle.