Shloka 37
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय १४० (कृष्णेन कर्णं प्रति पाण्डवबल-वैशिष्ट्यप्रदर्शनम्) / Udyoga Parva, Chapter 140
Krishna’s appraisal of Pandava advantage and war portents
कल्माषदण्डा गोविन्द विमला रथपद्धक्तय: । यूपा: समुपकल्पन्तामस्मिन् यज्ञे जनार्दन
kalmāṣadaṇḍā govinda vimalā rathapaddhaktayaḥ | yūpāḥ samupakalpantām asmin yajñe janārdana ||
കർണ്ണൻ പറഞ്ഞു—“ഗോവിന്ദാ, ജനാർദനാ! ഈ യജ്ഞത്തിനായി കളങ്കമില്ലാത്ത, നന്നായി ഒരുക്കിയ രഥപഥങ്ങൾ ക്രമത്തിലാക്കപ്പെടട്ടെ; യൂപങ്ങളും (യജ്ഞസ്തംഭങ്ങൾ) സജ്ജമാകട്ടെ.”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how moral agents can frame violent action within the language of sacred duty: by calling war a ‘yajña,’ Karna presents preparation for battle as a solemn, rule-governed undertaking, raising questions about how rhetoric and ritual imagery can be used to claim righteousness and inevitability.
Karna addresses Kṛṣṇa (Govinda/Janārdana) and speaks of making preparations—invoking chariot-tracks and sacrificial posts—while metaphorically treating the impending conflict as a sacrificial rite, signaling readiness for the decisive confrontation.