Mahabharata 7.149.62 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 149, Shloka 62

अलंबलवधः (Alaṃbala-vadhaḥ) / The Slaying of Alaṃbala and the Advance toward Karṇa

Devanagari script

तत:ः कर्ण शिने: पौत्र: सर्वपारसवै: शरै:

Transliteration

tataḥ karṇaṃ śineḥ pautraḥ sarvapārasavaiḥ śaraiḥ | śatrūṇāṃ damana-karaṇe vājarāja tad-anantaraṃ śinipautraḥ sātyakiḥ samparṇataḥ lohamayabāṇair dvārā karṇaṃ tasya sarvāṅgeṣu bāraṃbāraṃ cotaṃ prāpādayām āsa | eka-bhallena ca tasya sārathiṃ ratha-niṣkūṭāt adhaḥ apātayat ||

Translation

Sañjaya dit : Alors Sātyaki, petit-fils de Śini, dompteur des ennemis, accabla Karṇa d’une pluie de flèches à pointe de fer, le frappant encore et encore à tous les membres. D’un seul trait à large pointe (bhalla), il abattit aussi l’aurige de Karṇa, le faisant choir du siège du char.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः

• कर्णम्: Karna (as object)
• कर्णम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्ण
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• शिनेः: of Shini
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिनि
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• पौत्रः: grandson (descendant)
• पौत्रः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पौत्र
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सर्वपारसवैः: with wholly iron-made
• सर्वपारसवैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्वपारसव
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• शरैः: with arrows
• शरैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शर
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sanjaya
• Karna
• Satyaki
• Śini
• chariot
• arrows (śara/bāṇa)
• bhalla (broad-headed arrow)
• charioteer (sārathi)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the uncompromising nature of kṣatriya warfare: skill, resolve, and tactical strikes decide outcomes moment by moment. Ethically, it points to the heavy cost of battle—victory is pursued through force, yet every blow intensifies the burden of violence borne by all combatants.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sātyaki launches a concentrated attack on Karṇa, repeatedly wounding him with iron arrows, and then uses a bhalla (broad-headed shaft) to knock Karṇa’s charioteer down from the chariot-seat, disrupting Karṇa’s immediate combat effectiveness.