Shloka 17
Arjuna’s Approach, Drona’s Recognition, and the Turning of the Cattle (अर्जुनागमनम्, द्रोणवाक्यम्, गोगमनिवृत्तिः)
सुतेजनै रुक्मपुड्खै: सुधौतैर्नतपर्वभि: । आचितं पश्य कौन्तेयं कर्णिकारैरिवाचलम्,कनेरके फूलोंसे व्याप्त पर्वतकी जैसी शोभा होती है, उसी प्रकार मेरे तेज, सुनहरे पंखवाले, उज्ज्वल और झुकी हुई गाँठवाले बाणोंद्वारा कुन्तीपुत्र अर्जुनको आच्छादित हुआ देखो
sutejanai rukmapuṅkhaiḥ sudhautair nataparvabhiḥ | ācitaṃ paśya kaunteyaṃ karṇikārair ivācalam ||
Karna berkata: “Lihatlah putera Kunti—Arjuna—diselubungi anak panahku yang menyala-nyala; bulu panahnya berkilau keemasan seolah-olah baru digilap, dan sendinya melentur menunduk; dia tampak seperti gunung yang berselimut bunga karṇikāra.”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse illustrates how warriors use speech as a weapon: Karna aestheticizes violence to project dominance and shake the opponent’s resolve. Ethically, it highlights the tension between kṣatriya valor and the prideful taunting that can accompany it.
Karna boasts that his brilliant, gold-fletched arrows have covered Arjuna, comparing the sight to a mountain blanketed with karṇikāra blossoms—an image meant to magnify his own prowess and belittle Arjuna in the heat of combat.