Shloka 12
कर्णस्य सेनापत्याभिषेकः | Karṇa’s Consecration as Commander-in-Chief
सुमहत् कदनं कृत्वा गतो वैवस्वतक्षयम् । शत्रुहन्ता श्रीमान् अम्बष्ठपुत्र अपनी विशाल सेनासे घिरकर मित्रोंके लिये पराक्रम दिखा रहा था। वह शत्रु-सेनाका महान् संहार करके रणभूमिमें दुर्योधनके वीर पुत्र लक्ष्मणसे टक्कर ले यमलोकमें जा पहुँचा ।।
sañjaya uvāca | sumahat kadanaṃ kṛtvā gato vaivasvatakṣayam | śatruhantā śrīmān ambaṣṭhaputraḥ apī nī (nāmnā) viśāla-senayā ghirakṛtaḥ mitrebhyaḥ parākramaṃ darśayām āsa | sa śatru-senāyā mahān saṃhāraṃ kṛtvā raṇabhūmau duryodhanasya vīra-putre lakṣmaṇena saṃmukhaṃ yuddhvā yamalokaṃ prāpa || bṛhantaḥ sumahēṣvāsaḥ kṛtāstro yuddha-durmadaḥ ||
Disse Sañjaya: Tendo causado um vasto morticínio, o ilustre filho do Ambaṣṭha—embora cercado por uma grande hoste—mostrou seu valor em favor de seus aliados. Depois de infligir grande destruição ao exército inimigo, encontrou no campo de batalha Lakshmana, o heroico filho de Duryodhana, e, por fim, alcançou o reino de Yama. (Era) alto e imponente, grande arqueiro, plenamente treinado nas armas e embriagado pela fúria da guerra.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the tragic moral arc of war: even a celebrated, well-trained hero who fights for allies and displays extraordinary prowess ultimately meets death. Valor and martial skill do not negate the ethical cost of slaughter, and the battlefield’s glory culminates in Yama’s realm.
Sanjaya describes a formidable warrior—called the son of an Ambastha—who, though surrounded by a large force, fights fiercely for his friends, devastates the enemy ranks, then clashes with Lakshmana (Duryodhana’s son) and is slain, reaching Yamaloka.