Shloka 3236
अद्य कर्णमहं घोर सूदयिष्यामि सायकै: । “मैं महासमरमें शक्तिसम्पन्न रणदुर्मद एवं भयंकर कर्णको आज अपने बाणोंद्वारा मार डालूँगा
adya karṇam ahaṃ ghora sūdayiṣyāmi sāyakaiḥ |
Sañjaya said: “Today I shall strike down the formidable Karṇa with my arrows.” The line conveys the grim resolve of a warrior in the midst of a catastrophic war, where personal valor and strategic necessity override ordinary restraints, yet remain framed by the larger Mahābhārata tension between duty in battle and the moral cost of violence.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the hard edge of kṣatriya-dharma: in a righteous war, a warrior may be compelled to take lethal action against even a mighty opponent. It also implicitly points to the Mahābhārata’s ethical tension—duty can demand violence, yet that violence remains morally weighty and tragic.
Sañjaya reports a vow-like declaration made in the heat of battle: the speaker resolves to kill Karṇa using arrows. It signals an escalation toward a decisive confrontation with Karṇa, one of the war’s central champions.