Shloka 226

दुःशासनवधः (Duḥśāsana-vadha) — Bhīma’s vow-fulfillment in combat

Devanagari script

निशितैरिषुभि: कर्ण पञ्चाशद्धिः समार्पयत्‌ महाराज! इससे कुपित हुए धर्मपुत्र युधिष्ठिरने कर्णपर पचास पैने बाणोंका प्रहार किया

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | niśitair iṣubhiḥ karṇa pañcāśadbhiḥ samārpayat | mahārāja! tataḥ kupito dharmaputro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ karṇam prati pañcāśat tīkṣṇaiḥ bāṇaiḥ prāharat |

Translation

Sanjaya said: O King, he struck Karna with fifty sharp arrows. Enraged by this, Dharmaputra Yudhishthira retaliated against Karna, showering him with fifty keen shafts. The exchange reflects the war’s grim reciprocity: anger answers injury, and even the righteous are drawn into measured violence amid the demands of battle.

Word by Word

• निशितैः: with sharp
• निशितैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निशित
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• इषुभिः: arrows
• इषुभिः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: इषु
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• कर्णम्: Karna
• कर्णम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्ण
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• पञ्चाशद्भिः: with fifty
• पञ्चाशद्भिः: Karana
• Type: Noun (Numeral)
• Root: पञ्चाशत्
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Plural

• समार्पयत्: he struck/inflicted (lit. delivered)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-आ-√अर्प्
• Form: Imperfect (Lan), 3rd, Singular

• महाराज: O great king
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाराज
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sanjaya
• Dhritarashtra (Mahārāja)
• Karna
• Yudhishthira (Dharmaputra)
• arrows (iṣu, bāṇa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how quickly anger can overtake even a dharmic character in the heat of war, turning conflict into reciprocal escalation; it implicitly warns that righteousness is hardest to preserve amid injury and provocation.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Karna Parva battle scene, Karna is struck with fifty sharp arrows; Yudhishthira, angered, responds by striking Karna with fifty keen arrows in return.