Shloka 68

अलंबलवधः (Alaṃbala-vadhaḥ) / The Slaying of Alaṃbala and the Advance toward Karṇa

Devanagari script

हाहाकारस्ततो राजन्‌ सर्वसैन्येष्वभून्महान्‌ । कर्णोडपि विरथो राजन्‌ सात्वतेन कृत: शरै:

Transliteration

hāhākāras tato rājan sarvasainyeṣv abhūn mahān | karṇo 'pi viratho rājan sātvatena kṛtaḥ śaraiḥ ||

Translation

Kemudian, wahai Raja, pekik kegemparan besar menggema di seluruh pasukan. Bahkan Karṇa pun, wahai Raja, dibuat tanpa kereta oleh Sātvata melalui anak panahnya.

Word by Word

हाहाकारःa great cry of lamentation

ततःthen; thereafter

राजन्O king

सर्वसैन्येषुin all the armies

अभूत्arose; happened; became

महान्great

कर्णःKarna

अपिalso; even

विरथःwithout a chariot; chariotless

राजन्O king

सात्वतेनby the Sātvata (Krishna/one of the Vrishnis)

कृतःmade; rendered

शरैःwith arrows

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Karṇa

Sātvata (Vṛṣṇi/Yādava warrior; Kṛṣṇa’s kinsman)

armies (Kaurava and Pāṇḍava forces)

arrows

chariot

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how swiftly fortune shifts in war: even a famed champion like Karṇa can be reduced to vulnerability. Ethically, it underscores the fragility of power and the sobering cost of violence—panic spreads through entire armies when a major warrior is brought low.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a great uproar erupts across the battlefield because Karṇa has been struck so effectively by a Sātvata warrior that he becomes viratha—deprived of his chariot—signaling a dramatic moment in the combat.