Shloka 21
श्वः सर्वसैन्यान्युत्सूज्य जहि कर्ण धनंजयम् । प्रेष्यवत् पाण्डुपज्चालानुपभोक्ष्यामहे तत:,संजयने कहा--राजन्! प्रतिदिन रातको दुर्योधन, शकुनि और दुःशासनका तथा मेरा भी कर्णसे यही आग्रह रहता था कि “कर्ण! कल खबेरे तुम सारी सेनाओंको छोड़कर अर्जुनको मार डालो। फिर तो पाण्डवों और पांचालोंका हम भृत्योंके समान उपभोग करेंगे
śvaḥ sarvasainyāny utsṛjya jahi karṇa dhanañjayam | preṣyavat pāṇḍupañcālān upabhokṣyāmahe tataḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “O King, day after day Duryodhana, Śakuni, Duḥśāsana—and I as well—kept pressing Karṇa with the same demand: ‘Karṇa, tomorrow abandon all other engagements and slay Dhanañjaya (Arjuna). Then, with Arjuna removed, we shall treat the Pāṇḍavas and the Pañcālas like servants and enjoy dominion over them at our pleasure.’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse exposes the ethical collapse that accompanies unchecked ambition: victory is imagined not as restoration of order but as the right to reduce others to servitude. It highlights how adharma expresses itself through dehumanizing language and the instrumental use of violence for domination.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Duryodhana, Śakuni, Duḥśāsana—and even Sañjaya—repeatedly urged Karṇa to ignore other battlefield concerns and focus on killing Arjuna the next day, believing Arjuna’s death would allow them to subjugate the Pāṇḍavas and Pañcālas.