Shloka 7
भीष्मकृतः पाण्डवपक्ष-महारथ-प्रशंसा
Bhishma’s appraisal of Pandava-aligned chariot-warriors
करणानां वियोगाच्च तेन मे<र्थरथो मतः । नैष फाल्गुनमासाद्य पुनर्जीवन् विमोक्ष्यते
karaṇānāṁ viyogāc ca tena me 'rtharatho mataḥ | naiṣa phālgunam āsādya punar jīvan vimokṣyate ||
Bhishma disse: “Porque foi separado dos meios que tornam um guerreiro eficaz, eu o considero apenas um meio guerreiro de carro. Quando ele se defrontar com Falguna (Arjuna), não será libertado vivo novamente.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and status in dharmic warfare depend not only on skill but on the sustaining causes behind it—right conduct, rightful supports, and the consequences of one’s actions. When those enabling factors are lost, one’s capacity to prevail collapses, and moral causality (including curses incurred) bears fruit.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war deliberations, Bhishma evaluates Karna’s true fighting capacity. He declares that, due to the loss of crucial enabling protections and supports, Karna is effectively diminished and will not survive an encounter with Arjuna (Phalguna).