Shloka 706
कर्णपर्व — अध्याय ४०
Karṇa’s Pressure on the Pāñcālas; Duryodhana Disabled; Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
बलवीर्यमद्द कर्ण त्यक्त्वा क्षान्तिमुपागत: । कर्ण! इस प्रकार जूठन खाकर पुष्ट हुआ कौआ उस हंससे पराजित हो अपने महान् बल-पराक्रमका घमंड छोड़कर शान्त हो गया
balavīryamadda karṇa tyaktvā kṣāntim upāgataḥ | karṇa! evaṃ prakāraṃ jūṭhanaṃ khātvā puṣṭaḥ kākaḥ sa haṃsena parājitaḥ san mahān bala-parākramasya garvaṃ tyaktvā śāntaḥ abhavat |
Ó Karṇa, o corvo, embriagado de sua própria força e valentia, foi humilhado. Derrotado pelo cisne, abandonou o orgulho de seu grande poder e bravura e aquietou-se. Assim, embora tivesse engordado comendo sobras, ao defrontar-se com um superior aprendeu a contenção e cessou sua arrogância.
काक उवाच
Educational Q&A
Pride born of strength is unstable; true nobility is to abandon arrogance and cultivate kṣānti (forbearance). Being well-fed or outwardly strong does not equal genuine superiority—humility and restraint are the ethical ideal.
A crow, emboldened after growing strong by eating scraps, confronts a swan and is defeated. Addressing Karṇa, the speaker uses this as a moral example: the crow gives up its boastful confidence in power and becomes calm.