Mahabharata 7.181.21 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 181, Shloka 21
संजय उवाच अन्तर्त्तितं राक्षसेन्द्रं विदित्वा सम्प्राक्रोशन् कुरव: सर्व एव । कं नायं राक्षस: कूटयोधी हन्यात् कर्ण समरे5दृश्यमान:
sañjaya uvāca
antardhitaṃ rākṣasendraṃ viditvā samprākrośan kuravaḥ sarva eva |
kaṃ nāyaṃ rākṣasaḥ kūṭayodhī hanyāt karṇa samare 'dṛśyamānaḥ ||
Sanjaya berkata: Wahai Maharaja! Mengetahui raja para rākṣasa itu telah menjadi tidak kelihatan, semua pahlawan Kuru menjerit serentak: “Rākṣasa yang bertempur dengan tipu daya ini, apabila tidak pun kelihatan di medan, siapakah yang tidak akan ditewaskannya? Bagaimana mungkin dia tidak membunuh Karna dalam pertempuran?”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how warfare tests dharma not only through violence but through methods: when combat relies on concealment and māyā, opponents perceive it as kūṭayuddha (deceptive fighting), which destabilizes morale and raises ethical anxiety about what counts as ‘fair’ conduct in battle.
Ghaṭotkaca, the Rākṣasa leader fighting for the Pāṇḍavas, becomes invisible. Seeing (or realizing) this, the Kaurava warriors panic and shout that an unseen, trick-fighting Rākṣasa could kill anyone—especially Karṇa—since he cannot be properly confronted.
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