Shloka 46
कर्णवधार्थं धनञ्जयस्य प्रतिज्ञा — Arjuna’s resolve for Karṇa’s defeat
तत्र युद्ध महच्चासीत् तावकानां विशाम्पते । शूरेण बलिना सार्ध पाण्डवेन किरीटिना,(जित्वा तान् न्यहनत् पार्थ: शत्रूज्शक्र इवासुरान् ।।
sañjaya uvāca |
tatra yuddhaṁ mahac cāsīt tāvakānāṁ viśāmpate |
śūreṇa balinā sārdha pāṇḍavena kirīṭinā |
(jitvā tān nyahanat pārthaḥ śatrūn śakra ivāsurān ||)
तत्र युद्धं महच्चासीत्तावकानां विशाम्पते । शूरेण बलिना सार्धं पाण्डवेन किरीटिना । जित्वा तान् न्यहनत् पार्थः शत्रुञ्शक्र इवासुरान् ॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a traditional ethical-cosmic comparison—Indra defeating the Asuras—to present Arjuna’s battlefield success as not merely tactical but emblematic of the righteous side prevailing over hostile forces. It highlights the Mahābhārata’s recurring idea that a warrior’s duty (kṣatriya-dharma) can involve fierce action when aligned with a larger moral order.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a great clash occurred between the Kaurava forces and Arjuna (the diadem-wearing Pāṇḍava). Arjuna overpowered the opposing warriors and killed them, likened to Indra’s destruction of the Asuras.