Shloka 14
तन्न जानाति गाड़्ेयो न द्रोणो न च गौतम: । न च द्रोणसुतो राजन् कुत एव तु सूतज:,“राजन! इसे न तो गंगानन्दन भीष्म जानते हैं, न द्रोणाचार्य जानते हैं, न कृपाचार्य जानते हैं और न द्रोणपुत्र अश्वत्थामाको ही इसका पता है; फिर सूतपुत्र कर्ण तो इसे जान ही कैसे सकता है?”
tan na jānāti gāṅgeyo na droṇo na ca gautamaḥ | na ca droṇasuto rājan kuta eva tu sūtajaḥ ||
“O Hari, hindi ito nalalaman kahit ni Bhīṣma, anak ng Ilog Gaṅgā; ni Droṇa; ni Gautama (Kṛpa). Ni hindi rin ito alam ni Aśvatthāman, anak ni Droṇa. Paano pa kaya malalaman ito ni Karṇa na isinilang sa angkan ng sūta?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse argues from recognized authority: if even the foremost elders and masters do not know a certain matter, it is unreasonable to claim that a lesser or socially-disputed figure knows it. Ethically, it highlights how appeals to hierarchy and reputation are used to validate (or dismiss) claims in political counsel.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses the king and emphasizes that the matter at hand is unknown even to Bhīṣma, Droṇa, Kṛpa, and Aśvatthāman; therefore, Karṇa cannot be expected to know it. The statement functions as a pointed rhetorical move within the tense pre-war deliberations of the Udyoga Parva.