Shloka 8
अर्जुनकर्णसंनिपातवर्णनम् / The Convergence of Arjuna and Karṇa
अन्तकं मम मित्राणां हत्वा कर्ण महामृधे । दिष्ट्या युवामनुप्राप्ती जित्वासुरमिवामरौ,वह तेजमें अग्नि, बलमें वायु और गम्भीरतामें पातालके समान था। अपने मित्रोंका आनन्द बढ़ानेवाला और मेरे मित्रोंके लिये यमराजके समान था। किसी असुरको जीतकर आये हुए दो देवताओंके समान तुम दोनों मित्र महासमरमें कर्णको मारकर यहाँ आ गये, यह बड़े सौभाग्यकी बात है
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
antakaṁ mama mitrāṇāṁ hatvā karṇa mahāmṛdhe |
diṣṭyā yuvām anuprāptī jitvāsuram ivāmarau ||
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Setelah membunuh Karṇa dalam pertempuran besar yang menggerunkan itu—dia yang bagaikan Maut bagi sekutu-sekutuku—kamu berdua telah kembali ke sini dengan tuah, laksana dua dewa yang menewaskan seorang asura. Inilah benar-benar suatu berkat.”
युधिषछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even amid righteous war, the epic frames victory as a grave moral event: the fall of a mighty foe brings relief and gratitude (diṣṭyā), yet the language acknowledges the immense destructive power involved (Karna as antaka to allies). The verse highlights the tension between dharma-driven necessity and the human weight of killing.
After Karṇa has been killed in the great battle, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses the two returning warriors (understood in context as the pair who accomplished the deed and/or returned from that encounter), comparing them to two gods who have defeated an asura, and expressing fortunate relief that the formidable Karṇa—deadly to their side—has been overcome.