Shloka 12
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 132 — Duryodhana’s Instructions to Purocana at Vāraṇāvata
Lākṣāgṛha Planning
स्पर्थमानस्तु पार्थेन सूतपुत्रो5त्यमर्षण: । दुर्योधनं समाश्रित्य सोडवमन्यत पाण्डवान्,सूतपुत्र कर्ण सदा अर्जुनसे लाग-डाँट रखता और अत्यन्त अमर्षमें भरकर दुर्योधनका सहारा ले पाण्डवोंका अपमान किया करता था
spardhamānastu pārthena sūtaputro 'tyamarṣaṇaḥ | duryodhanaṃ samāśritya so 'vamat p�āṇḍavān ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Burning with rivalry toward Pārtha (Arjuna), the charioteer’s son Karṇa—quick to anger and unable to endure affront—took refuge in Duryodhana’s support and, on that strength, repeatedly insulted the Pāṇḍavas. The verse highlights how envy and wounded pride, when backed by partisan power, turn into habitual contempt and moral decline.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Unchecked rivalry (spardhā) and intolerance (amarṣa) corrode character: when one leans on partisan backing rather than self-restraint, contempt for others becomes habitual, undermining dharma and sowing future conflict.
The narrator describes Karṇa’s ongoing antagonism toward Arjuna. Relying on Duryodhana’s patronage, Karṇa repeatedly demeans the Pāṇḍavas, intensifying factional hostility between the Kauravas and Pāṇḍavas.