Shloka 4
प्रवृद्धशुद्रद्रमवीरुदोष धी प्रवृद्धनानाविधनिर्सरौकसौ । यथाचलौ वा चलितौ महाबलौ तथा महास्त्रैरितरेतरं हत:
sañjaya uvāca |
pravṛddhaśudradrumavīrudoṣadhī pravṛddhanānāvidhanirjharaukasaū |
yathācalau vā calitau mahābalau tathā mahāstrair itaretaraṃ hataḥ ||
Dijo Sañjaya: Como dos montañas poderosas—cuyas cumbres, árboles, lianas, matorrales y plantas medicinales han crecido enormes, y que guardan los nacimientos de muchas grandes cascadas—así Karna y Arjuna, de fuerza inmensa, avanzaron y se hirieron mutuamente con sus armas supremas.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the impersonal, overwhelming momentum of war: two great warriors, like mountains set into motion, exchange blows with powerful weapons. It implicitly cautions that when conflict escalates, even the noblest strengths can become forces of destruction, emphasizing the gravity of choosing and restraining violence.
Sañjaya describes Karṇa and Arjuna advancing toward each other and striking one another with mighty weapons. Their clash is compared to two huge, richly forested mountains with many waterfalls, suggesting immense power and a violent, earth-shaking encounter.