Shloka 29
दुःशासनवधः (Duḥśāsana-vadha) — Bhīma’s vow-fulfillment in combat
युधिष्ठिरश्चापि स त॑ स्वर्णपुड्खै: शितै: शरै: । प्रहसन्निव तं कर्ण: कड़कपत्रै: शिलाशितै:
yudhiṣṭhiraś cāpi sa taṁ svarṇapuḍkhaiḥ śitaiḥ śaraiḥ | prahasan niva taṁ karṇaḥ kaḍakapatraiḥ śilāśitaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Yudhiṣṭhira too struck him with sharp arrows fitted with golden feathers. Karṇa, as though laughing, answered him with arrows whose wings were of hard metal and whose points were whetted like stone—meeting force with force in the fierce ethic of battle.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya code in war: steadfastness under attack and answering with skill and courage. Karṇa’s ‘as if laughing’ demeanor signals fearlessness and composure, while the exchange of finely crafted arrows underscores disciplined martial duty rather than personal cruelty.
In the Karṇa Parva battle scene narrated by Sañjaya, Yudhiṣṭhira shoots Karṇa with sharp, gold-fletched arrows. Karṇa responds immediately, seemingly unshaken, with rigid-winged, stone-whetted arrows—an intense back-and-forth in their combat.