Shloka 57
एवमेतन्महाराज नरवाजिरथद्विपान्,तथा स सोमकान् हत्वा तस्थावेको महारथ: । महाराज! इस प्रकार शत्रुसूदन महाधनुर्धर कर्ण शत्रुपक्षके पैदल, घोड़े, रथ और हाथियोंका संहार करके अविचलभावसे खड़ा रहा। जैसे समस्त प्राणियोंका संहार करके काल खड़ा हो, उसी प्रकार महाबली महारथी कर्ण सोमकोंका विनाश करके युद्धभूमिमें अकेला ही डटा रहा
evam etan mahārāja nara-vāji-ratha-dvipān tathā sa somakān hatvā tasthāv eko mahārathaḥ |
Sañjaya disse: “Assim foi, ó Rei. Tendo abatido a infantaria, a cavalaria, os guerreiros de carro e os elefantes do inimigo—e tendo igualmente destruído os Somakas—Karna, o grande guerreiro de carro, permaneceu firme, sozinho. Como o Tempo (Kāla) que fica de pé após a destruição de todos os seres, o poderoso Karna manteve-se inabalável no campo de batalha, depois de lançar a ruína sobre os Somakas.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the epic’s vision of battlefield power as morally weighty and ultimately governed by Kāla (Time/Death): even the greatest hero’s triumph is framed as a manifestation of inexorable fate, reminding the listener that martial glory and mass destruction are inseparable in war.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Karna has slaughtered multiple divisions—infantry, cavalry, chariots, and elephants—and has also devastated the Somaka forces; after this, Karna stands alone, steady and unshaken, compared to Kāla after universal destruction.