Shloka 40

अर्जुनकर्णसंनिपातवर्णनम् / The Convergence of Arjuna and Karṇa

Devanagari script

कच्चित्‌ संग्रामो विदितो वै तवायं समागमे सृजजयकौरवाणाम्‌ | यत्रावस्थामीदृशीं प्रापितो<$हं कच्चित्‌ त्वया सोड्द्य हतो दुरात्मा

Transliteration

kaccit saṅgrāmo vidito vai tavāyaṃ samāgame sṛñjayakauravāṇām | yatrāvasthām īdṛśīṃ prāpito 'haṃ kaccit tvayā so 'dya hato durātmā ||

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira said: “Have you learned the news of today’s battle, the encounter between the Sṛñjayas and the Kauravas—by which I have been brought to such a wretched condition? And have you today slain that wicked-souled Karṇa?”

Word by Word

• {'kaccit': 'whether? (interrogative particle expressing anxious inquiry)', 'saṅgrāmaḥ': 'battle, armed conflict', 'viditaḥ': 'known, ascertained', 'tava': 'to you', 'ayam': 'this (present event)', 'samāgame': 'in the meeting/engagement, in the encounter', 'sṛñjaya-kauravāṇām': 'of the Sṛñjayas and the Kauravas (the two armies/sides)', 'yatra': 'wherein, in which (battle)', 'avasthām': 'state, condition', 'īdṛśīm': 'such as this, of this kind', 'prāpitaḥ': 'made to reach, brought to (a condition)', 'aham': 'I', 'adya': 'today', 'hataḥ': 'slain, killed', 'durātmā': 'evil-minded, wicked-souled (epithet of Karṇa here)'}

Speaker

युधिषछ्िर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Sṛñjayas
• Kauravas
• Karṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the moral and psychological burden of war: even a righteous king like Yudhiṣṭhira is shaken by defeat and seeks confirmation about the fall of a formidable adversary. It reflects how dharma in battle is intertwined with grief, responsibility, and the need for truthful news.

What is happening in the narrative?

After a grievous turn in the fighting, Yudhiṣṭhira—having been reduced to a miserable state—anxiously questions a messenger/companion whether the day’s battle between the Pāṇḍava-aligned Sṛñjayas and the Kauravas is known to him, and specifically whether Karṇa has been slain.