Shloka 803
प्रस्कन्दन्तो बलिना साधुमुक्ति: कर्णेन बाणैर्निहता: प्रसहय । पांचालोंके प्रधान-प्रधान सैनिक तथा दूसरे योद्धा पुनः कर्ण और अर्जुनके बीचमें आ पहुँचे; परंतु बलवान् कर्णने अच्छी तरह छोड़े हुए बाणोंद्वारा उन सबको हठपूर्वक मार गिराया
sañjaya uvāca | praskandanto balinā sādhumuktiḥ karṇena bāṇair nihatāḥ prasahya | pāñcālānke pradhāna-pradhāna-sainikāḥ tathā anye yoddhāḥ punaḥ karṇa-arjunayor madhye ājagmuḥ; parantu balavān karṇaḥ suṣṭhu muktaiḥ bāṇaiḥ tān sarvān haṭhapūrvakaṃ nipātayām āsa |
Sañjaya berkata: Ketika para askar terkemuka Pāñcāla dan para pahlawan lain mara lagi lalu datang menghalang di antara Karṇa dan Arjuna, Karṇa—perkasa dan tidak berganjak—menumbangkan mereka semua dengan paksa melalui anak panah yang dilepaskan tepat dan terukur. Adegan ini menegaskan etika medan perang yang suram: keberanian dan kemahiran, apabila sudah dilepaskan, menjadi alat pemusnah yang tidak dapat dibendung, tanpa mengira nilai peribadi sesiapa pun yang berdiri menghalang.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the battlefield ethic of kṣatriya-dharma: when war is joined, skill and resolve become decisive, and even eminent warriors may fall if they obstruct a principal duel. It also implicitly warns that excellence in arms, though admirable, carries grave moral weight because its ‘properly released’ power results in irreversible harm.
During the Karṇa–Arjuna confrontation, leading Pāñcāla troops and other fighters rush in again to intervene between them. Karṇa responds immediately, using force and expertly loosed arrows to strike them down, clearing the space around the central duel.