Shloka 43
वर्षित्वा शरवर्षेण प्रताप्प रिपुवाहिनीम् । श्रीमानिव सहस्रांशुर्जगत् सर्व प्रताप्प च,अस्त्रके तेजसे सम्पूर्ण पाण्डव और पांचालोंको संताप देकर, बाणोंकी वषकि द्वारा शत्रुसेनाको तपाकर तथा सहस््र किरणोंवाले तेजस्वी सूर्यके समान सम्पूर्ण संसारमें अपना प्रताप बिखेरकर वैकर्तन कर्ण पुत्र और वाहनोंसहित मारा गया। याचकरूपी पक्षियोंके समुदायके लिये जो कल्पवृक्षके समान था, वह कर्ण मार गिराया गया
varṣitvā śaravarṣeṇa pratāpya ripuvāhinīm | śrīmān iva sahasrāṃśur jagat sarvaṃ pratāpya ca ||
Śalya said: “After pouring down a rain of arrows and scorching the enemy host, and after spreading his splendor across the whole world like the glorious sun with a thousand rays, Vaikartana Karṇa—who had tormented the Pāṇḍavas and the Pāñcālas with the full force of his weapons—was slain along with his son and his charioteer. He who had been like a wish-fulfilling tree for the flock of supplicant-birds was brought down.”
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse juxtaposes immense martial brilliance with inevitable mortality: even a warrior who blazes like the sun and overwhelms armies can fall. It also preserves Karṇa’s ethical reputation for generosity—likening him to a wish-fulfilling tree for supplicants—suggesting that moral qualities (like dāna) remain part of one’s legacy even amid the violence of war.
Śalya describes Karṇa at the height of his battlefield prowess—showering arrows, burning the enemy host, and dazzling the world with fame—yet concludes with his death in the great war, noting that he was slain together with close companions (as conveyed in the received passage) and recalling his famed role as a benefactor to petitioners.