Shloka 35
कर्णेन युधिष्ठिरानीकविदारणम् / Karṇa’s Breach of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Battle-Line
विद्युदिन्द्रधनुर्नद्धं रथं दीप्तं व्यदीपयन् । धर्म, सत्य, तप और अर्थ--इनको वहाँ लगाम बनाया गया। रथकी आधारभूमि मन हुआ और सरस्वती देवी रथके आगे बढ़नेका मार्ग थीं। नाना रंगोंकी विचित्र पताकाएँ पवनसे प्रेरित होकर फहरा रही थीं, जो बिजली और इन्द्रधनुषसे बँधे हुए उस देदीप्यमान रथकी शोभा बढ़ाती थीं ।। ३३-३४ ई ।। वषट्कार: प्रतोदो5भूद् गायत्री शीर्षबन्धना,वषट्कार घोड़ोंका चाबुक हुआ और गायत्री उस रथके ऊपरी भागकी बन्धन-रज्जु बनीं
vidyudindradhanur-naddhaṁ rathaṁ dīptaṁ vyadīpayan | dharma-satya-tapo-'rthāṁs tatra lagām akārayat || vaṣaṭkāraḥ pratodo 'bhūd gāyatrī śīrṣa-bandhanā |
Duryodhana disse: “Aquele carro em brasa resplandecia ainda mais, como se estivesse atado por relâmpago e arco-íris. Ali, Dharma, Verdade, austeridade e a prosperidade justa foram moldados como suas rédeas. A mente serviu de base sustentadora, e a deusa Sarasvatī foi o caminho guia à sua frente. Estandartes maravilhosos de muitas cores—impelidos pelo vento—tremulavam e aumentavam o esplendor daquele carro radiante. O brado vaṣaṭ tornou-se seu chicote, e Gāyatrī foi a corda de amarração sobre a parte superior da armação.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a chariot allegory to present ideal governance and self-mastery: reins made of dharma, truth, austerity, and artha imply that power (the chariot) should be controlled by ethical restraint; mind as the base stresses inner discipline; Sarasvatī as the path highlights guidance by wisdom and right speech; Vedic elements (vaṣaṭ, Gāyatrī) frame righteous action as aligned with sacred order.
Duryodhana describes a magnificent, radiant chariot in highly symbolic, Vedic-poetic terms—its splendor likened to lightning and a rainbow, with wind-tossed banners—while assigning moral and ritual components to its parts (reins, whip, bindings), turning the scene into an emblem of power directed by dharma and sacred discipline.