Shloka 17
अर्जुन-कर्ण-सङ्ग्रामः
Arjuna–Karna Engagement in the Cattle-Raid Aftermath
अकृतास्त्र: कृतास्त्रं वै बलवन्तं सुदुर्बल: । तादृशं कर्ण यः पार्थ योद्धुमिच्छेत् स दुर्मति:
akṛtāstraḥ kṛtāstraṃ vai balavantaṃ sudurbalaḥ | tādṛśaṃ karṇa yaḥ pārtha yoddhum icchet sa durmatiḥ ||
Dijo Kripa: «Un hombre no adiestrado en las armas, por más débil que sea, que aun así desea combatir contra un guerrero plenamente instruido y poderoso como Arjuna, hijo de Kunti, debe ser tenido por alguien cuyo juicio ha quedado arruinado. Tal desafío no es valentía, sino delirio, pues desconoce tanto la destreza como la prudencia ética que exige la guerra».
कृप उवाच
Educational Q&A
Competence and discernment are part of dharma in warfare: challenging a superior, fully trained warrior without adequate training is not righteous valor but reckless folly born of impaired judgment.
Kṛpa addresses Karṇa, warning him that an untrained and weak fighter who seeks to battle a master of arms like Arjuna is acting with ruined judgment—implicitly cautioning against an ill-considered confrontation.