Shloka 25
कर्णपर्व — अध्याय ५७
Arjuna’s targeted advance; Śalya–Karṇa dialogue; interception attempts
रथांश्व बहुधा भग्नान् हेमकिड्किणिन: शुभान्
rathāṁśvān bahudhā bhagnān hemakiṅkiṇinaḥ śubhān
സഞ്ജയൻ പറഞ്ഞു—സ്വർണ്ണ കിങ്കിണികളാൽ ശോഭിച്ച അനേകം രഥങ്ങളും അശ്വങ്ങളും പലവിധത്തിൽ തകർന്ന നിലയിൽ കാണപ്പെട്ടു।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the stark impermanence of martial splendor: even richly adorned war-gear and noble steeds are reduced to ruin in battle, reminding the listener that external grandeur cannot withstand the consequences of violence and conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the battlefield scene in the Karṇa Parva: chariots and horses, once magnificent and decorated with golden bells, have been broken and scattered in the course of the fighting.