Shloka 14

Devanagari script

गदया भीमसेनस्तु कर्णस्य रथकूबरम्‌

Transliteration

gadayā bhīmasenas tu karṇasya rathakūbaram

Translation

サञ्जयは語った。ビーマセーナは己のガダー（鉄槌）をもって、カルナの戦車の轅（ながえ）／主梁を打ち、車を損じて動きを鈍らせ、乱戦のただ中でその勇士の勢いを止めようとした。これは戦の策である――ただ打ち合うのではなく、害をなす手段そのものを断つという、戦場の苛烈な必然のうちにある選択であった。

Word by Word

• गदया: with a mace
• गदया: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: गदा
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• भीमसेनः: Bhimasena (Bhima)
• भीमसेनः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीमसेन
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• कर्णस्य: of Karna
• कर्णस्य: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्ण
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• रथकूबरम्: the chariot-pole (yoke/pole of the chariot)
• रथकूबरम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथकूबर
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Bhīmasena
• Karṇa
• gadā (mace)
• ratha (chariot)
• rathakūbara (chariot pole/beam)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights battlefield prudence: in war, a warrior may aim to neutralize an opponent’s capacity to fight—here by damaging the chariot—rather than only seeking direct injury. It underscores how kṣatriya action often blends force with tactical restraint and purpose.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that Bhīmasena, wielding a mace, strikes Karṇa’s chariot at its kūbara (a key structural pole/beam), attempting to disable or destabilize the chariot during the fighting.