Shloka 233

Devanagari script

तव बुद्ध्या हि भद्रें ते वधस्तस्य दुरात्मन: । राजा युधिष्ठिरसे ऐसा कहकर अर्जुन भगवान्‌ श्रीकृष्णसे बोले--'श्रीकृष्ण! आज रणभूमिमें मैं कर्णका वध करूँगा, इसमें संशय नहीं है। आपका कल्याण हो। आपकी बुद्धिसे ही उस दुरात्माका वध होगा”

Transliteration

tava buddhyā hi bhadre te vadhastasya durātmanaḥ |

Translation

サンジャヤは言った。「おお高貴なる方よ、まさしくあなたの策と導きによって、あの邪悪な魂の者の討伐は成し遂げられる。」物語の枠内で、アルジュナはバガヴァーン・シュリー・クリシュナに告げた。「シュリー・クリシュナよ！今日この戦場で、私はカルナを討つ。疑いはない。あなたに吉祥あれ。あなたの智慧によってこそ、あの悪しき者の死は成就するのだ。」

Word by Word

तवof you/your

बुद्ध्याby (your) intellect

हिindeed/for

भद्रेO auspicious one / O noble lady

तेof you/your

वधःkilling/slaying

तस्यof him/of that one

दुरात्मनःof the evil-souled one

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Karna (implied by context as the target of vadha)

Krishna (implied by context as the one addressed for counsel)

Arjuna (implied by context as the warrior vowing the slaying)

Yudhishthira (implied by context in the prose continuation)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores that in righteous conflict, decisive action (vadha) is ethically and practically tied to discerning counsel (buddhi). Responsibility is shared: the warrior acts, but guidance shapes the act’s direction and justification, especially when confronting a ‘durātmā’—one portrayed as morally destructive.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports a moment where the success of killing the enemy is attributed to the addressee’s strategic intelligence. In the surrounding context of Karna’s final confrontation, the line functions as a narrative hinge: the coming slaying is framed as enabled by counsel rather than mere force.