Shloka 21
ततस्तत्त्वमिति ज्ञात्वा राधेय: परवीरहा । शक्तिमेवाभिकाड्क्षन् वै वासवं प्रत्यपालयत्
tatastattvam iti jñātvā rādheyaḥ paravīrahā | śaktim evābhikāṅkṣan vai vāsavaṃ pratyapālayat ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: Then, having understood the truth of the matter, Rādheya—slayer of enemy-heroes—continued to wait for Vāsava, intent only on obtaining the spear. The verse highlights a warrior’s calculated patience: once he recognizes the reality behind events, he restrains immediate action and fixes his will on a single decisive weapon, even as the moral weight of such single-minded ambition looms in the background.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores discerning reality (tattva-jñāna) and then acting with disciplined restraint: once Karna understands the situation, he does not rush, but waits strategically for the moment that will secure the decisive weapon. Ethically, it also points to how fixation on power (a single weapon) can narrow one’s moral horizon.
Vaiśaṃpāyana narrates that Karna (Rādheya), after realizing the true situation, keeps watch for Indra (Vāsava), desiring the śakti (spear). He is portrayed as deliberately waiting for the encounter that will yield this potent weapon.