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 ||
Kripa dit : «Un homme sans entraînement aux armes, si faible fût-il, qui pourtant veut combattre un guerrier pleinement formé et puissant comme Arjuna, fils de Kuntî, doit être tenu pour quelqu’un dont le jugement est perdu. Un tel défi n’est pas du courage, mais une illusion, car il méprise à la fois l’art du combat et la prudence morale requise dans la guerre.»
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.