Shloka 11
कर्णवधप्रसङ्गः / The Context of Karṇa’s Fall
Krishna’s Dharmic Recollection and the Decisive Astra
स विक्षरन् रुधिरं सर्वगात्रे रथानीक॑ सूतसूनोर्विवेश । मयाभिभूतान् सैनिकानां प्रबर्हा- नसौ प्रपश्यन् रुधिरप्रदिग्धान्
sa vikṣaran rudhiraṁ sarvagātre rathānīkaṁ sūtasūnor viveśa | mayābhibhūtān sainikānāṁ prabarhān asau prapaśyan rudhirapradigdhān |
Bleeding from every limb, he entered the massed chariot-formation of the charioteer’s son (Karna). Seeing the warriors whom I had already overpowered—lying prostrate and smeared with blood—he pressed on, drawn into the grim spectacle of slaughter that the battle’s fury had made inevitable.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the harsh ethical landscape of kṣatriya warfare: even grievously wounded, a warrior presses into the enemy formation, confronting the consequences of battle—fallen, blood-smeared fighters—where duty and the inevitability of violence collide.
A wounded combatant, bleeding from all limbs, enters Karna’s chariot-array. He sees the soldiers already defeated by Arjuna, lying prostrate and covered in blood, highlighting the intensity and devastation of the ongoing engagement.