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Shloka 32

धृतराष्ट्रविलापः — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Lament and Inquiry (Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 2)

कर्णश्र निहत: संख्ये दिव्यास्त्रज्ञो महाबल:,जहाँ दिव्यास्त्रोंका ज्ञान रखनेवाला महाबली कर्ण युद्धमें मारा गया, जहाँ समरांगणमें भूरिश्रवा, सोमदत्त तथा महाराज बाह्लिकका संहार हो गया, वहाँ भाग्यके सिवा दूसरा क्या कारण बताया जा सकता है?

karṇaś ca nihataḥ saṅkhye divyāstrajño mahābalaḥ | yatra divyāstrāṇāṃ jñānaṃ dhārayan mahābalī karṇo yuddhe māritaḥ, yatra samarāṅgaṇe bhūriśravāḥ somadattaś ca mahārājo bāhlikaś ca saṃhṛtaḥ, tatra bhāgyāt paraṃ kāraṇaṃ kim anyad vaktuṃ śakyate ||

ณ สมรภูมินั้น กรรณะผู้ทรงพละใหญ่และรู้แจ้งศัสตราเทพยังถูกสังหาร; ณ ทุ่งรบเดียวกัน ภูริศรวัส โสมทัตตะ และพระราชาพาหลิกะก็ถึงความพินาศ—ที่นั่นจะกล่าวเหตุอื่นใดได้นอกจากชะตากรรม?

कर्णःKarna
कर्णः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootकर्ण
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
निहतःslain
निहतः:
TypeAdjective
Rootनि-हन्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular, क्त (past passive participle)
सङ्ख्येin battle
सङ्ख्ये:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootसङ्ख्य
FormFeminine, Locative, Singular
दिव्यdivine
दिव्य:
TypeAdjective
Rootदिव्य
FormNeuter, Accusative, Plural
अस्त्रweapons (missiles)
अस्त्र:
TypeNoun
Rootअस्त्र
FormNeuter, Accusative, Plural
ज्ञःknower
ज्ञः:
TypeAdjective
Rootज्ञ (from √ज्ञा/√ज्ा in sense 'to know')
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular, क (agentive/possessive suffix)
महाबलःof great strength
महाबलः:
TypeAdjective
Rootमहाबल
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular

धघतयाट्र उवाच

D
Dhṛtarāṣṭra
K
Karṇa
B
Bhūriśravas
S
Somadatta
B
Bāhlika
D
divyāstras (celestial weapons)
S
samarāṅgaṇa (battlefield)

Educational Q&A

The verse highlights the tension between human effort (strength, skill, even divine weapon-knowledge) and the overwhelming force of bhāgya (fate). Dhṛtarāṣṭra interprets catastrophic losses as evidence that outcomes in war can exceed rational explanation, prompting reflection on destiny, karma, and the limits of power.

Dhṛtarāṣṭra, hearing of the great Kaurava losses, lists major warriors—Karṇa, Bhūriśravas, Somadatta, and Bāhlika—who have been killed. He concludes that such a collapse cannot be explained by ordinary causes and attributes it to fate.