Shloka 21
संजय उवाच अन्तर्त्तितं राक्षसेन्द्रं विदित्वा सम्प्राक्रोशन् कुरव: सर्व एव । कं नायं राक्षस: कूटयोधी हन्यात् कर्ण समरे5दृश्यमान:,संजयने कहा--महाराज! राक्षसराज घटोत्कचको अदृश्य हुआ जानकर समस्त कौरवयोद्धा चिलला-चिल्लाकर कहने लगे "“मायाद्वारा युद्ध करनेवाला यह निशाचर जब रणभूमिमें स्वयं दिखायी ही नहीं देता है, तब कर्णको कैसे नहीं मार डालेगा?”
sañjaya uvāca
antardhitaṃ rākṣasendraṃ viditvā samprākrośan kuravaḥ sarva eva |
kaṃ nāyaṃ rākṣasaḥ kūṭayodhī hanyāt karṇa samare 'dṛśyamānaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Knowing that the lord of the Rākṣasas had become invisible, all the Kuru warriors cried out together: “When this deceitful, illusion-wielding Rākṣasa is not even seen on the battlefield, whom would he not strike down? How could he fail to kill Karṇa?” The verse frames the Kauravas’ panic at an opponent who fights through concealment and māyā, implying an ethical unease: in war, fear intensifies when the enemy’s methods appear ‘unfair’ or beyond ordinary martial norms, and even a famed hero like Karṇa seems vulnerable.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how warfare tests dharma not only through violence but through methods: when combat relies on concealment and māyā, opponents perceive it as kūṭayuddha (deceptive fighting), which destabilizes morale and raises ethical anxiety about what counts as ‘fair’ conduct in battle.
Ghaṭotkaca, the Rākṣasa leader fighting for the Pāṇḍavas, becomes invisible. Seeing (or realizing) this, the Kaurava warriors panic and shout that an unseen, trick-fighting Rākṣasa could kill anyone—especially Karṇa—since he cannot be properly confronted.