Shloka 51
शरोत्तमेनाउ्जलिकेन राजं- स्तदा महास्त्रप्रतिमन्त्रितेन । पार्थोउपराह्ने शिर उच्चकर्त वैकर्तनस्याथ महेन्द्रसूनु:
sañjaya uvāca |
śarottamena añjalikena rājan tadā mahāstrapratimantritena |
pārtho 'parāhṇe śira uccakarta vaikartanasya atha mahendrasūnuḥ ||
Sinabi ni Sañjaya: O Hari, noon nga’y si Pārtha—anak ni Indra—sa pamamagitan ng napakahusay na palasong tinatawag na Añjalika, na pinatibay ng mga mantra ng dakilang sandata, ay pinugot ang ulo ni Vaikartana (Karṇa) sa oras ng hapon.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the severe demands of kṣatriya-dharma in wartime: decisive action, mastery of consecrated weapons, and the acceptance that even great heroes meet an end when the accumulated consequences of vows, choices, and destiny mature on the battlefield.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Arjuna, using the mantra-empowered arrow named Añjalika, strikes and severs Karna’s head in the afternoon—describing the climactic moment of Karna’s fall in the Karṇa Parva.