Shloka 44
अजिशीर्षे प्रातःसंध्यायां संग्रामवर्णनम् / Dawn-Transition Battle at Ajiśīrṣa
Chapter 161
दृष्टवैतां निर्जितां सेनां रणे कर्णेन धीमता । अभियात्येष बीभत्सु: सूतपुत्रजिधघांसया,“बुद्धिमान् कर्णके द्वारा रणभूमिमें पराजित हुई इस सेनाको देखकर सूतपुत्रका वध करनेकी इच्छासे ये अर्जुन आगे बढ़े जा रहे हैं
dṛṣṭvaitāṃ nirjitāṃ senāṃ raṇe karṇena dhīmatā | abhiyātyeṣa bībhatsuḥ sūtaputra-jighāṃsayā ||
Sañjaya berkata: Melihat bala tentera ini ditewaskan di medan perang oleh Karṇa yang bijaksana, Arjuna (Bībhatsu) kini mara ke hadapan, digerakkan oleh tekad untuk membunuh putera Sūta (anak kusir).
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, a warrior’s dharma (duty to protect and restore order) can become entangled with personal motives such as vengeance. It invites reflection on intention (saṅkalpa): the same act—engaging the enemy—may be framed as strategic necessity or as retaliatory killing, and ethical clarity depends on the inner purpose as well as the outer duty.
Sañjaya reports that Karṇa has defeated the army on the battlefield. Seeing this setback, Arjuna (called Bībhatsu) moves forward to confront Karṇa, specifically with the intention of killing him, described here by the epithet “sūtaputra.”