Shloka 20

कर्णपुत्रवधः (The Fall of Vṛṣasena) — Karṇa Parva, Adhyāya 62

Devanagari script

तत: शल्य: प्रहस्येद॑ं कर्ण पुनरुवाच ह

Transliteration

tataḥ śalyaḥ prahasyedaṁ karṇa punar uvāca ha

Translation

Sañjaya said: Then Śalya, laughing, spoke these words to Karṇa once again—his tone suggesting mockery and provocation amid the tense moral atmosphere of the battlefield.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात्)
• Form: अव्यय (तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त)

• शल्यः: Shalya
• शल्यः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शल्य
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• प्रहस्य: having laughed
• प्रहस्य: Karana
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्रहस् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund), कर्तरि

• इदम्: this (speech/word)
• इदम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम्
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• कर्ण: O Karna
• कर्ण: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्ण
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः
• Form: अव्यय

• उवाच: said, spoke
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• ह: indeed (emphatic particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ह
• Form: अव्यय (निपात)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Śalya
• Karṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how speech—especially laughter and taunting—can be used as a weapon in war, testing a warrior’s self-control and ethical steadiness under provocation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that Śalya, serving as Karṇa’s charioteer, laughs and addresses Karṇa again, indicating a continuation of a tense exchange meant to unsettle or challenge him.