Shloka 23
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 54 — Missile-Exchange and Tactical Redirection
Arjuna, Aśvatthāman, Karṇa
स पाण्डवस्तूर्णमुदीर्णकोप: कृतागसं कर्णमुदीक्ष्य हर्षात् । क्षणेन साक्षं सरथं ससारथि- मन्तर्दधे घोरशरौघवृष्ट्या
sa pāṇḍavas tūrṇam udīrṇakopaḥ kṛtāgasaṃ karṇam udīkṣya harṣāt | kṣaṇena sākṣaṃ sarathaṃ sasārathim antardadhe ghorśaraughavṛṣṭyā ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana dit : Voyant Karṇa—coupable d’une faute—se dresser devant lui, Arjuna, fils de Pāṇḍu, s’embrasa aussitôt de colère. Mais, saisi aussi d’une âpre exaltation, il déchaîna sur-le-champ une effroyable pluie de flèches et, en un instant, enveloppa entièrement Karṇa—avec ses chevaux, son char et son cocher. La scène montre comment l’indignation juste peut monter avec l’ardeur guerrière, et comment la riposte du héros se présente comme châtiment d’un tort, non comme simple haine personnelle.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how a warrior’s anger is portrayed as morally charged—directed at an offender (kṛtāgasaṃ)—and how martial action is framed as a swift, decisive response to wrongdoing. It also shows the coexistence of kopa (wrath) and harṣa (exhilarated zeal) in the kṣatriya ethos.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Arjuna, upon seeing Karṇa, becomes intensely angry and immediately releases a terrifying rain of arrows, so dense that Karṇa is covered from view along with his chariot and charioteer (and, by context, his horses as well).