Mahabharata 7.175.11 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 175, Shloka 11
सूतपुत्रवधार्थाय शस्त्राण्यादाय सर्वश: । प्रययु: कर्णमुद्दिश्य मृत्युं कृत्वा निवर्तनम्
sañjaya uvāca | sūtaputravadhārthāya śastrāṇy ādāya sarvaśaḥ | prayayuḥ karṇam uddiśya mṛtyuṃ kṛtvā nivartanam ||
Санджая сказал: Увидев, как Дхриштадьюмна был обращён в бегство в бою, великие колесничие Панчалов и Сомаков, исполненные ярости, взяли всякое оружие и двинулись на Карну, сына возничего, с намерением убить его, дав мрачный обет: отступление — лишь до самой смерти.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a wartime ethic of uncompromising resolve—fighters bind themselves to a vow-like determination where retreat is acceptable only through death. It also shows how anger and revenge can intensify violence, narrowing moral choices to a single destructive aim.
After Dhṛṣṭadyumna is seen defeated, the Pāñcāla and Somaka mahārathas, filled with indignation, arm themselves and march toward Karṇa, targeting him for death and deciding not to withdraw from the fight unless they die.
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