Shloka 33
कर्ण रथवरश्रेष्ठं श्रेष्ठ सर्वधनुष्मताम् । धृतराष्ट्रके महाधनुर्धर पुत्र सम्पूर्ण धनुर्धरों तथा रथियोंमें श्रेष्ठ नरोत्तम कर्णकी भूरि-भूरि प्रशंसा करने लगे ।। तत: कर्णो महाराज ददाह रिपुवाहिनीम्
sañjaya uvāca | karṇa rathavarāśreṣṭhaṃ śreṣṭhaṃ sarvadhanuṣmatām | dhṛtarāṣṭrake mahādhanuḥdhara putra sampūrṇa dhanuḥdharās tathā rathiyo meṃ śreṣṭha narottama karṇakī bhūri-bhūri praśaṃsā karane lage || tataḥ karṇo mahārāja dadāha ripuvāhinīm ||
Wika ni Sañjaya: “Paulit-ulit nilang pinuri si Karṇa—si Karṇa, ang pinakamainam sa mga mandirigmang nakakarwahe, ang pangunahin sa lahat ng mamamana—O Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Ang pinakamahusay na taong iyon, ang dakilang mamamana sa panig ng iyong anak, ganap sa sining ng pana at namumukod sa mga rathī, ay pinapurihan nang walang tigil. Pagkaraan, si Karṇa, O Hari, ay tila nagsunog sa hukbo ng kaaway (sa pamamagitan ng kaniyang mga palaso), at pinaso ang hanay ng kalaban.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how public acclaim and martial reputation intensify the momentum of war: praise of a warrior’s excellence (as rathī and master archer) is immediately followed by destructive action. Ethically, it reflects the Mahābhārata’s tension between valor celebrated as kṣatriya-dharma and the grave human cost of that valor when it ‘burns’ the opposing host.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Karṇa is repeatedly lauded as the foremost chariot-warrior and archer among the Kauravas. Immediately afterward, Karṇa launches a fierce assault, metaphorically ‘burning’ the enemy army—i.e., devastating it with his weapons and battlefield skill.