Shloka 7

Jayadratha Approaches Draupadī in the Forest

Hospitality, Persuasion, and Reproach

Devanagari script

शूराश्ष बलवन्तश्न संयुगेष्वपलायिन:

Transliteration

śūrāś ca balavantaś ca saṃyugeṣv apalāyinaḥ

Translation

Karna declara que são verdadeiros heróis—fortes e resolutos—os que não voltam as costas no choque da batalha.

Word by Word

• शूराः: heroes, brave men
• शूराः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शूर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• बलवन्तः: strong, powerful
• बलवन्तः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बलवत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• संयुगेषु: in battles, in combats
• संयुगेषु: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: संयुग
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Plural

• अपलायिनः: not fleeing, non-retreating
• अपलायिनः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अपलायिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

कर्ण उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Karna

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Valor is not merely strength but steadfastness: a true warrior is one who does not abandon duty and honor by fleeing when battle becomes dangerous.

What is happening in the narrative?

Speaking as Karna, the verse characterizes certain fighters as genuinely heroic—strong and unyielding—emphasizing their refusal to retreat in combat, a key marker of martial honor in the epic.