Shloka 393
दहंस्तस्थौ महाबाहु: पाण्डवानां महाचमूम् । राजन! समरांगणमें धूमरहित अग्निके समान प्रज्वलित होनेवाला महाबाहु कर्ण भी पाण्डवोंकी विशाल सेनाको दग्ध करता हुआ स्थिरभावसे खड़ा रहा
sañjaya uvāca | dahaṁstasthau mahābāhuḥ pāṇḍavānāṁ mahācamūm | rājan samārāṅgaṇe dhūmarahita-agnike samānaḥ prajvalito mahābāhuḥ karṇo 'pi pāṇḍavānāṁ viśālāṁ senāṁ dagdhvā sthirabhāvena tiṣṭhaty eva |
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai Raja, di gelanggang perang sang kesatria berlengan perkasa berdiri teguh, membakar habis bala besar Pandawa. Laksana api tanpa asap yang menyala penuh, Rādhā-putra Karṇa pun tetap tak tergoyahkan, melalap pasukan agung Pandawa.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the terrifying steadiness of martial power: unwavering resolve can appear as brilliance (like smokeless fire) yet it also intensifies destruction. It implicitly invites reflection on how valor and firmness, when placed in an adharma-laden war, become ethically ambivalent—admirable as discipline, tragic in consequence.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that Karna, compared to a blazing smokeless fire, stands firm on the battlefield and scorches the Pandavas’ vast army, emphasizing Karna’s momentum and the severe pressure on the Pandava forces at this point in the Karna Parva.