Shloka 166

धृतराष्ट्रस्य क्रतु-प्रवर्तनम् तथा पाण्डवानां निमन्त्रण-प्रतिवचनम्

Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Sacrifice Commences and the Pandavas’ Reply to the Invitation

Devanagari script

आपतद्धिम्महावेगैश्षित्रसेनस्य सैनिकै: | परम बुद्धिमान सूतपुत्र कर्णके द्वारा ज्यों-ज्यों गन्धर्वोपर मार पड़ने लगी

Transliteration

āpata-dhiṁ mahā-vegaiś citrasenasya sainikaiḥ | parama-buddhimān sūta-putraḥ karṇaḥ yathā-yathā gandharvopari māraṁ prāpnoti tathā-tathā te śataśaḥ sahasraśaś ca tatra āgatya ekatrī-bhavanti | evaṁ citrasenasya atyanta-vegāḥ sainikāḥ āgacchantaḥ kṣaṇa-mātreṇa tatra sarvā pṛthivī gandharva-mayī babhūva ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana dit : Tandis que les troupes d’une extrême rapidité de Citrāsena se pressaient, chaque fois que Karṇa—le très sage fils du cocher—frappait les Gandharvas encore et encore, eux-mêmes arrivaient en nombre toujours plus grand, s’assemblant là par centaines et par milliers. Ainsi, à l’arrivée des soldats les plus prompts de Citrāsena, en un instant le sol tout entier sembla rempli de Gandharvas.

Word by Word

• {'āpata': 'rushing in

• sudden onslaught', 'mahā-vega': 'great speed

• impetuous force', 'citrasena': 'Citrāsena (leader of the Gandharvas)', 'sainika': 'soldier

• troop', 'parama-buddhimān': 'supremely intelligent

• very discerning', 'sūta-putra': 'son of a charioteer (epithet of Karṇa)', 'karṇa': 'Karna', 'gandharva': 'Gandharva (celestial musician-warrior class)', 'upari': 'upon

• against', 'māra': 'blow

• attack', 'śataśaḥ': 'by hundreds

• in hundreds', 'sahasraśaḥ': 'by thousands

• in thousands', 'āgatya': 'having come

• arriving', 'ekatrī-bhavanti': 'they assemble

• they gather together', 'atyanta': 'exceedingly

• extremely', 'kṣaṇa-mātra': 'a mere moment', 'pṛthivī': 'earth

• ground', 'gandharva-mayī': 'made up of Gandharvas

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Citrāsena
• Karna
• Gandharvas
• Citrāsena’s troops
• Earth/ground (pṛthivī)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a practical ethical lesson of warfare and leadership: individual prowess, even when guided by intelligence, can be neutralized when an opponent responds with disciplined coordination and overwhelming numbers. It cautions against overreliance on personal heroics without assessing the larger strategic situation.

What is happening in the narrative?

As Karṇa repeatedly attacks the Gandharvas, Citrāsena’s forces rapidly reinforce the battlefield. Gandharvas arrive in hundreds and thousands, so that the area quickly appears completely filled with them, indicating a sudden escalation and encirclement through reinforcements.