Shloka 79
द्रोणकर्णयोः निशि संप्रहारः — Night Engagement with Droṇa and Karṇa
ततो दुर्योधनो राजंस्तावकानभ्यभाषत,राजन! तदनन्तर दुर्योधनने आपके सैनिकोंसे कहा--“वीरो! तुम यत्नपूर्वक राधापुत्र कर्णकी रक्षा करो। वह युद्धस्थलमें अर्जुनका वध किये बिना नहीं लौटेगा; क्योंकि उसने मुझसे यही बात कही है!
tato duryodhano rājan tāvakān abhyabhāṣata | rājan! tad-anantaraṁ duryodhanena āpake sainikoṁ se kahā— “vīrāḥ! yūyaṁ yatnapūrvakaṁ rādhāputraṁ karṇaṁ rakṣata | sa yuddhasthale ’rjunasya vadhaṁ kṛtvā vinā na nivartiṣyate; yataḥ sa mayā saha etad eva uvāca!”
Sanjaya said: Then King Duryodhana addressed his own troops: “Heroes, protect Karna, the son of Radha, with utmost care. He will not return from the battlefield without killing Arjuna, for this is exactly what he has pledged to me.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how vows and personal resolve drive action in war, and how leaders mobilize collective responsibility around a single warrior’s mission. Ethically, it also shows the tension between loyalty to one’s side and the destructive fixation on killing an opponent.
Sanjaya reports that Duryodhana instructs the Kaurava troops to guard Karna carefully, emphasizing that Karna has promised not to withdraw from battle until he has slain Arjuna.