Shloka 26
Adhyāya 2: Nārada’s Disclosure—Karṇa’s Training and the Brahmin’s Curse (Śānti-parva)
“नराधम! जब पृथ्वीमें तेरा पहिया फँस जायगा और तू अचेत-सा हो रहा होगा, उस समय तेरा शत्रु पराक्रम करके तेरे मस्तकको काट गिरायेगा। अब तू चला जा ।।
narādhama! yadā pṛthivyāṃ tava cakraṃ saṃsaktam bhaviṣyati, tvam ca acetana iva bhaviṣyasi, tadā tava śatruḥ parākrameṇa tava mastakaṃ chittvā pātayiṣyati. idānīṃ tvaṃ gaccha. yathā iyaṃ gauḥ hatā mūḍha pramattena tvayā mama, tathā pramattasya te ’rātiḥ śiras pātayiṣyati.
Nārada berkata: “Hai manusia paling hina! Ketika roda keretamu terbenam dan tersangkut di tanah dan engkau menjadi seperti tak sadar, saat itu musuhmu akan menunjukkan keperkasaannya dan menebas kepalamu. Pergilah sekarang. Hai bodoh—sebagaimana karena kelalaianmu engkau telah membunuh sapi milikku ini, demikian pula ketika engkau lengah, lawanmu akan menebas kepalamu.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Heedlessness (pramāda) in violating dharma—here, the wrongful killing of a cow—invites corresponding downfall; negligence becomes the opening through which retribution arrives.
Nārada rebukes a wrongdoer for killing a cow and foretells a fitting end: at a moment of vulnerability—when the chariot-wheel is stuck and the person is dazed—an enemy will be able to behead him.