Shloka 42
दुर्योधनस्य कर्णप्रार्थना — कृपकर्णसंवादः
Duryodhana’s Appeal to Karna — The Kripa–Karna Dialogue
मृदुपूर्व तु राथेयो भीममाजावयोधयत् । क्रोधपूर्व तथा भीम: पूर्व वैरमनुस्मरन्,राधानन्दन कर्ण तो भीमसेनपर कोमल प्रहार करता हुआ रणभूमिमें उनके साथ युद्ध करता था; परंतु भीमसेन पहलेके वैरको बारंबार स्मरण करते हुए क्रोधपूर्वक उसके साथ जूझ रहे थे
mṛdupūrvaṃ tu rātheyo bhīmam ājāv ayodhayat | krodhapūrvaṃ tathā bhīmaḥ pūrva-vairam anusmaran ||
Then Rātheya (Karna) fought Bhīma in the battle with comparatively gentle blows; but Bhīma, remembering their former enmity again and again, grappled with him in wrath, striking and striving with anger born of old hostility.
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts restraint and wrath: even amid righteous warfare, the mind’s fixation on past enmity fuels krodha and intensifies violence, while relative self-control moderates one’s conduct. It highlights how memory of grievance shapes ethical behavior in conflict.
On the battlefield, Karṇa (Rātheya) engages Bhīma with comparatively mild strikes, whereas Bhīma, repeatedly recalling their earlier hostility, fights Karṇa with anger and heightened aggression.