Shloka 24
Karṇa-parva Adhyāya 20 — Yudhiṣṭhira–Duryodhana Encounter and Escalation of Arms
पाण्ड्सृूज्जयपञ्चालान् शरगोचरमागतान् । ममर्द तरसा कर्ण: सिंहो मृगगणानिव,जैसे सिंह अपनी दृष्टिमें पड़े हुए मृगोंको वेगपूर्वक मसल डालता है, उसी प्रकार कर्णने अपने बाणोंकी पहुँचके भीतर आये हुए पाण्डव, सृंजय तथा पांचाल योद्धाओंको बड़े वेगसे रौंद डाला
pāṇḍasṛñjayapañcālān śaragocaram āgatān | mamarda tarasā karṇaḥ siṃho mṛgagaṇān iva ||
Sañjaya said: Karṇa, with irresistible speed, crushed the Pāṇḍavas, the Sṛñjayas, and the Pāñcālas who had come within the range of his arrows—just as a lion, upon sighting a herd of deer, swiftly overpowers and tramples them. The verse underscores the brutal momentum of battle, where martial prowess and tactical reach decide life and death, even as the wider war continues to test the limits of dharma amid violence.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, sheer force and tactical advantage (being within an archer’s effective range) can overwhelm even renowned warriors. Ethically, it points to the grim reality that martial excellence, though aligned with kṣatriya duty, can rapidly turn into indiscriminate devastation, intensifying the Mahābhārata’s ongoing tension between dharma and the destructive momentum of conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Karṇa, surging forward with great speed, strikes down the Pāṇḍava-aligned forces—Pāṇḍavas, Sṛñjayas, and Pāñcālas—who have come within the reach of his arrows, comparing his onslaught to a lion overpowering a herd of deer.