Shloka 42
अर्जुनकर्णसंनिपातवर्णनम् / The Convergence of Arjuna and Karṇa
यत्तन्मया बाणसमर्पितेन ध्यातो5सि कर्णस्य वधाय वीर । तन्मे त्वया कच्चिदमोघमद्य ध्यानं कृतं कर्णनिपातनेन,वीर! जिस समय मैं बाणोंसे घायल कर दिया गया, उस समय कर्णके वधके लिये मैंने तुम्हारा चिन्तन किया था। क्या तुमने कर्णको धराशायी करके मेरे उस चिन्तनको आज सफल बना दिया?
yattanmāyā bāṇasamarpitena dhyāto 'si karṇasya vadhāya vīra | tanme tvayā kaccidamoghamadya dhyānaṃ kṛtaṃ karṇanipātanena ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O hero, when I was struck down by arrows, I fixed my mind upon you for the slaying of Karṇa. Has that meditation of mine proved unfailing today—have you made it fruitful by bringing Karṇa down?”
युधिषछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral psychology of war: even a dharmic king like Yudhiṣṭhira, wounded and pressured by battlefield necessity, places intense hope in a decisive act (Karṇa’s fall). It shows how resolve and prayer-like remembrance (dhyāna) are directed toward restoring balance, while still carrying anxiety about whether one’s intention has borne fruit.
After Yudhiṣṭhira has been wounded by arrows, he recalls having mentally invoked Arjuna to accomplish Karṇa’s killing. He now asks Arjuna whether that focused thought has become successful—i.e., whether Arjuna has indeed felled Karṇa in battle.