Shloka 263
धृतराष्ट्रविलापः — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Lament and Inquiry (Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 2)
ततो नृपतयो वीरा: स्थास्यन्ति मम शासने । “अकेला कर्ण ही मेरे साथ रहकर समस्त पाण्डवोंको मार डालेगा। फिर सारे वीर नरेश मेरी आज्ञाके अधीन हो जायँगे
tato nṛpatayo vīrāḥ sthāsyanti mama śāsane |
Entonces los reyes valerosos permanecerán obedientes a mi mandato. (Así se imagina:) «Karna, él solo, quedándose a mi lado, matará a todos los Pāṇḍavas; después, todos los soberanos heroicos quedarán bajo mi autoridad».
धघतयाट्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical danger of overconfidence and power-lust: imagining that victory and universal submission will follow from reliance on a single champion. It implicitly contrasts political ambition with the uncertainty of dharma and fate in war.
Duryodhana voices his expectation that Karna, staying with him, will single-handedly destroy the Pāṇḍavas; once they fall, the allied kings will submit to Duryodhana’s rule.