Shloka 66

Devanagari script

क्षितिं खं च दिशश्वैव माययाभ्येत्य दंशित: । गत्वा कर्णरथाभ्याशं व्यचरत्‌ कुण्डलानन:,इसके बाद आकाशसे उतरकर वह पुन: अपने सुवर्णमण्डित रथपर स्थित हो गया और मायासे ही पृथ्वी, आकाश एवं सम्पूर्ण दिशाओंमें घूमता हुआ कवचसे सुसज्जित हो कर्णके रथके समीप जाकर विचरने लगा। उस समय उसका मुख कुण्डलोंसे सुशोभित हो रहा था

Transliteration

kṣitiṃ khaṃ ca diśaś caiva māyayābhyetya daṃśitaḥ | gatvā karṇarathābhyāśaṃ vyacarat kuṇḍalānanaḥ ||

Translation

क्षितिं खं च दिशश्चैव माययाभ्येत्य दंशितः । गत्वा कर्णरथाभ्याशं व्यचरत् कुण्डलाननः ॥

Word by Word

• {'kṣitim': 'the earth, ground', 'kham': 'the sky, space', 'diśaḥ': 'directions, quarters', 'caiva': 'and indeed, and also', 'māyayā': 'by illusion, magical power, deceptive artifice', 'abhyetya': 'having approached, coming near', 'daṃśitaḥ': 'armoured, clad in protective gear (kavaca-equipped)', 'gatvā': 'having gone', 'karṇa-ratha': 'Karṇa’s chariot', 'abhyāśam': 'near, in the vicinity', 'vyacarat': 'moved about, roamed, ranged', 'kuṇḍala-ānanaḥ': 'one whose face is adorned with earrings'}

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Karṇa
• Karṇa’s chariot (ratha)
• armour/cuirass (kavaca)
• earrings (kuṇḍala)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how, in war, illusion and tactical deception (māyā) can be deployed to unsettle an opponent; ethically, it points to the tension between straightforward kṣatriya combat and victory-seeking stratagems that darken the moral clarity of battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes a warrior—armoured and using māyā—moving through earth, sky, and directions, then coming close to Karṇa’s chariot and circling near it, his face shining with earrings, suggesting a dramatic, bewildering manoeuvre aimed at confronting or confounding Karṇa.