Shloka 21
भीष्मस्य दुर्योधनं प्रति कुलहितोपदेशः | Bhīṣma’s Counsel to Duryodhana on Dynastic Welfare
युधिष्ठिरं च भीम॑ं च यमौ चैवार्जुनादते । अर्जुनेन समं॑ युद्धमपि यौधिष्िरे बले
yudhiṣṭhiraṃ ca bhīmaṃ ca yamau caivārjunād ṛte | arjunena samaṃ yuddham api yudhiṣṭhire bale ||
Karna dit : «Hormis Arjuna, je ne frapperai pas à mort Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhīma, ni les jumeaux Nakula et Sahadeva—même si, dans la mêlée, je les trouve en mon pouvoir et en état d’être tués. Mon véritable combat sera avec Arjuna seul, quand bien même il se tiendrait au sein de l’armée de Yudhiṣṭhira.»
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in war, a warrior may bind himself by ethical restraint and personal vows: Karna limits his violence to a single rival (Arjuna), presenting honor and self-imposed dharma as governing conduct amid battlefield power.
Karna declares that, though he may encounter Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhīma, and the twins in vulnerable positions during the coming war, he will not kill them; his decisive fight will be only with Arjuna, even within Yudhiṣṭhira’s forces.