Shloka 643

Devanagari script

तस्य सर्वस्य दुष्टात्मा कर्णो वै मूलमित्युत । “निष्पाप अर्जुन! रात्रिके समय पुत्रसहित तुम्हारी माता कुन्तीको जला देने और तुम सब लोगोंके साथ जूआ खेलनेके कार्यमें जो दुर्योधनकी प्रवृत्ति हुई थी, उन सब षड़्यन्त्रोंका मूल कारण यह दुष्टात्मा कर्ण ही था

Transliteration

tasya sarvasya duṣṭātmā karṇo vai mūlam ity uta |

Translation

Sañjaya dit : «De tous ces méfaits, Karna —au dessein mauvais— en fut véritablement la racine.» Au regard du dharma, ce verset fait peser sur Karna la responsabilité morale première d’une chaîne de complots, le dépeignant non comme un simple complice, mais comme la source motrice d’actes qui ont violé le devoir juste et visé les innocents.

Word by Word

तस्यof that

सर्वस्यof all (of it)

दुष्टात्माthe wicked-souled one

कर्णःKarna

वैindeed

मूलम्the root/cause

इतिthus

उतand/also (emphatic particle)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Karna

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights moral causality and responsibility: sustained wrongdoing often has instigators, and identifying the ‘root’ emphasizes accountability for initiating and fueling adharma, not merely participating in it.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya, narrating events and their moral background, states that among the various wrongful schemes attributed to the Kaurava side, Karna is to be regarded as the principal source or instigator.