Shloka 22
Draupadī’s Identification of the Pāṇḍavas and the Onset of the Chariot Engagement (द्रौपदी-पाण्डव-परिचयः)
राजन! मैं पर्वत, वन और काननोंसहित सारी पृथ्वीको जीत लूँगा। जिस भूमिपर चार बलशाली पाण्डवोंने मिलकर विजय पायी है उसे मैं तुम्हारे लिये अकेला ही जीत लूँगा, इसमें संशय नहीं है। खोटी बुद्धिवाला कुरु-कुलाधम भीष्म मेरे इस पराक्रमको अपनी आँखों देखे ।। अनिन्न्दध्य॑ निन्दते यो हि अप्रशंस्यं प्रशंसति । स पश्यतु बल॑ मेडद्य आत्मानं तु विगर्हतु,जो अनिन्दनीयकी निन्दा और अप्रशंसनीयकी प्रशंसा करता है, वह भीष्म आज मेरा बल देख ले और अपने-आपको धिक्कारे
rājan! ahaṁ parvata-vana-kānanaiḥ saha sarvāṁ pṛthivīṁ jayiṣyāmi. yasyāṁ bhūmau catvāraḥ balavantaḥ pāṇḍavāḥ sametya vijayaṁ prāptavantaḥ, tām ahaṁ tava kṛte eko’pi jayiṣyāmi—atra na saṁśayaḥ. khoti-buddhir kuru-kulādhamaḥ bhīṣmaḥ mama etat parākramaṁ svacakṣuṣā paśyatu. anindyaṁ nindate yo hi, apraśaṁsyaṁ praśaṁsati; sa paśyatu balaṁ madīyaṁ, ātmānaṁ tu vigarhatu.
Karna disse: “Ó rei, conquistarei toda a terra — suas montanhas, florestas e matas selvagens. A mesma região que os quatro poderosos Pāṇḍavas venceram juntos, eu a vencerei para ti sozinho; disso não há dúvida. Que Bhīṣma — que, por juízo equivocado, trouxe desonra à linhagem dos Kuru — veja com os próprios olhos o meu valor. Pois aquele que censura o irrepreensível e louva o que não merece louvor, que contemple hoje a minha força e então condene a si mesmo.”
कर्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights an ethical standard for judgment: one should not blame the blameless nor praise what is unworthy. Karna weaponizes this principle polemically against Bhīṣma, implying that flawed discernment in praise and blame leads to self-reproach and moral discredit.
Karna, addressing the Kuru king (contextually Duryodhana), boasts that he will single-handedly conquer the same realm the Pāṇḍavas won together. He challenges Bhīṣma to witness his prowess, while accusing Bhīṣma of misjudgment and dishonoring the Kuru line through misplaced criticism and praise.