Shloka 9

कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira

Devanagari script

अन्यस्मै देहि गाण्डीवमिति मां योडभिचोदयेत्‌

Transliteration

anyasmai dehi gāṇḍīvam iti māṁ yo 'bhi-codayet | tasya śiraś chindiyām iti mayā manasi pratijñātam | ananta-parākrama govinda! tvat-sannidhau eva eṣa mahārājaḥ mām etad avadat; tasmād enaṁ na kṣamāmi | imaṁ dharma-bhīruṁ nṛpaṁ haniṣyāmi ||

Translation

Sañjaya berkata: “Sesiapa yang mendesak aku, ‘Berikan Gāṇḍīva kepada orang lain,’—aku telah bernazar dalam hati bahawa aku akan memenggal kepalanya. Wahai Govinda yang tiada bertepi keperkasaanmu! Raja agung ini mengucapkan kata-kata itu kepadaku di hadapanmu sendiri; maka aku tidak dapat mengampuninya. Aku akan membunuh raja ini, meskipun dia seorang yang takut melanggar dharma.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'anyasmai', 'definition': 'to another person

• for someone else (dative singular)'}, {'term': 'dehi', 'definition': 'give! (imperative of √dā)'}, {'term': 'gāṇḍīvam', 'definition': 'the Gāṇḍīva bow (Arjuna’s famed bow)'}, {'term': 'abhi-codayet', 'definition': 'should urge, press, incite (causative/impelling sense)'}, {'term': 'śiraḥ', 'definition': 'head'}, {'term': 'chindiyām', 'definition': 'I would cut off (optative/volitional form of √chid)'}, {'term': 'manasi', 'definition': 'in the mind, inwardly'}, {'term': 'pratijñātam', 'definition': 'vowed, solemnly promised'}, {'term': 'ananta-parākrama', 'definition': 'of endless/boundless valor'}, {'term': 'govinda', 'definition': 'Govinda (epithet of Kṛṣṇa)'}, {'term': 'tvat-sannidhau', 'definition': 'in your presence'}, {'term': 'mahārājaḥ', 'definition': 'great king'}, {'term': 'kṣamāmi', 'definition': 'I forgive (√kṣam)'}, {'term': 'dharma-bhīru', 'definition': 'one who fears (deviation from) dharma

• scrupulous about righteousness'}, {'term': 'nṛpa', 'definition': 'king'}, {'term': 'haniṣyāmi', 'definition': 'I will slay (future of √han)'}]

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Govinda (Kṛṣṇa)
• Arjuna (implied as owner of Gāṇḍīva)
• Gāṇḍīva (bow)
• Mahārāja (unnamed king addressed in context)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical tension between a personal vow (pratijñā) and the broader demands of dharma: a warrior’s commitment to honor and promise can harden into unforgiving violence, even against someone described as dharma-conscious. It invites reflection on when vows uphold righteousness and when they become instruments of wrath.

What is happening in the narrative?

A speaker (reported by Sañjaya) recalls having inwardly vowed to kill anyone who tells him to give the Gāṇḍīva to another. Since a great king has spoken this provocation in Kṛṣṇa’s presence, he declares he cannot pardon it and resolves to kill that king, despite calling him ‘dharma-bhīru’ (scrupulous about dharma).