Shloka 112

Devanagari script

तेषामापततां शूर: पञ्चालानां तरस्विनाम्‌ | आदत्तासूज्शरै: कर्ण: पतज्रानामिवानलः

Transliteration

teṣām āpatatāṁ śūraḥ pañcālānāṁ tarasvinām | ādatta asūñ śaraiḥ karṇaḥ pataṅgānām ivānalaḥ ||

Translation

ครั้นเหล่านักรบปัญจาลผู้กล้าหาญและรวดเร็วพุ่งเข้ามา วีรบุรุษกรรณะก็พรากชีวิตพวกเขาด้วยศรของตน—ดุจเปลวเพลิงอันโชติช่วงเผาผลาญแมลงเม่าที่บินเข้าใกล้

Word by Word

तेषाम्of them

आपतताम्of (those) rushing/attacking

शूरःthe hero

पञ्चालानाम्of the Panchalas

तरस्विनाम्of the swift/impetuous

आदत्तtook up / seized

असूञ्lives (vital breaths)

शरैःwith arrows

कर्णःKarna

पतत्राणाम्of birds

इवlike/as

अनलःfire

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Karna

Pāñcālas

arrows

fire

moths (pataṅga)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the harsh moral reality of war: courage alone does not protect one from destruction when confronting superior martial skill. It also reflects the kṣatriya battlefield ethic where life is staked and taken decisively, and poetic simile is used to convey the inevitability of death when one rushes into overwhelming danger.

What is happening in the narrative?

As Pāñcāla warriors charge toward Karṇa, he counters with a deadly volley of arrows, killing them swiftly. Sañjaya describes the scene with the image of fire consuming moths that fly into it, emphasizing the speed and inevitability of their downfall.