Shloka 5
कर्णार्जुनसमागमः — The Karṇa–Arjuna Confrontation
Cosmic Spectatorship and Vows
अर्जुनस्तु ततो दिव्यमस्त्रं चक्रे हसन्निव । तदस्त्रं वारयामास ब्राह्मणो युधि भारत
arjunas tu tato divyam astraṃ cakre hasann iva | tad astraṃ vārayāmāsa brāhmaṇo yudhi bhārata ||
भारत! तब अर्जुन ने मानो हँसते हुए दिव्यास्त्र प्रकट किया; परंतु युद्ध में ब्राह्मण अश्वत्थामा ने उस अस्त्र को रोककर निष्फल कर दिया।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the peril of escalation: divine power does not guarantee decisive victory when opponents possess countermeasures, and reliance on ever-greater weapons can push combat beyond ethical restraint. It implicitly warns that mastery of astras must be governed by dharma, otherwise conflict becomes a contest of annihilating capabilities rather than righteous purpose.
During the battle, Arjuna deploys a divine missile with calm confidence ('as if smiling'). Aśvatthāmā—identified as a Brahmin warrior—responds by neutralizing that weapon on the field, indicating the use of a counter-astra and showing that Arjuna’s attack is checked rather than allowed to run its course.