Shloka 5
प्रभातमात्रे श्वोभूते केशवायार्जुनाय वा । शक्तिरेषा हि मोक्तव्या कर्ण कर्णेति नित्यश:,संजयने कहा--प्रजानाथ! कुरुकुलश्रेष्ठ! प्रतिदिन संग्रामसे लौटनेपर रात्रिमें हमलोगोंकी यही सलाह हुआ करती थी कि “कर्ण! तुम कल सबेरा होते ही श्रीकृष्ण अथवा अर्जुनपर यह शक्ति चला देना'
prabhātamātre śvobhūte keśavāyārjunāya vā | śaktir eṣā hi moktavyā karṇa karṇeti nityaśaḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai raja manusia, wahai yang terbaik dari wangsa Kuru! Setiap hari, ketika kami kembali dari pertempuran, nasihat kami yang terus-menerus sepanjang malam adalah ini: ‘Karna, esok saat fajar engkau harus melepaskan senjata ilahi ini—entah kepada Keśava (Kṛṣṇa) atau kepada Arjuna.’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral tension of war-counsel: repeated strategic advice urges Karna to deploy a decisive divine weapon at the earliest moment. It underscores how relentless planning and fixation on victory can press warriors toward ethically weighty choices—especially when divine weapons are involved and the targets are central figures like Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna.
Sañjaya reports to the king that, after each day’s fighting, the Kaurava side repeatedly advised Karna through the night that at the next dawn he should discharge the Śakti weapon, aiming it either at Kṛṣṇa (Keśava) or at Arjuna, to secure a decisive advantage.