Shloka 29
दमयन्त्याः व्याकुलता — स्वयंवरसंनिपातः — देवदूतयाचनम्
Damayantī’s Distress, Proclamation of the Svayaṃvara, and the Gods’ Request
धृष्टय्युम्नेन वीरेण शिशुपालात्मजेन च | दुर्योधनं रणे हत्वा सद्य: कर्ण च भारत
dhṛṣṭadyumnena vīreṇa śiśupālātmajena ca | duryodhanaṃ raṇe hatvā sadyaḥ karṇa ca bhārata ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai Bhārata, setelah Duryodhana gugur di medan laga oleh sang pahlawan Dhṛṣṭadyumna dan putra Śiśupāla, Karṇa pun akan segera terbunuh.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s moral logic of consequence: when rulers persist in adharma and war becomes inevitable, even the mightiest warriors are portrayed as moving toward an appointed end. It highlights the inexorable unfolding of karmic and political outcomes once violence is chosen as the path.
Sañjaya addresses Dhṛtarāṣṭra (“Bhārata”) and foretells a sequence of battlefield deaths: Duryodhana will be slain in combat by Dhṛṣṭadyumna and the son of Śiśupāla, and Karṇa will also be killed soon thereafter. The line functions as a grim prediction of the Kaurava collapse.