Shloka 276

Devanagari script

दैवं पुरुषकारेण को निवर्तितुमुत्सहेत्‌ | यह युद्ध अवश्यम्भावी है। इसे कोई टाल नहीं सकता। भला, दैवको पुरुषार्थके द्वारा कौन मिटा सकता है

Transliteration

daivaṃ puruṣakāreṇa ko nivartitum utsahet | ayaṃ yuddho 'vaśyambhāvī; enaṃ kaścin na tālayituṃ śaknoti | bhala, daivaṃ puruṣārthena kaḥ pramārṣṭum arhati ||

Translation

Karna nói: “Ai dám dùng sức người mà xoay chuyển điều đã do số mệnh an bài? Cuộc chiến này tất yếu sẽ xảy ra; không ai có thể ngăn được. Quả vậy, ai có thể xóa bỏ định mệnh bằng nỗ lực cá nhân?”

Word by Word

• दैवम्: fate, destiny (divine ordinance)
• दैवम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: दैव
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• पुरुषकारेण: by human effort
• पुरुषकारेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुषकार
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• कः: who?
• कः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: किम्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• निवर्तितुम्: to turn back, to avert, to stop
• निवर्तितुम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि-वृत्
• Form: Infinitive (Tumun), Parasmaipada (usage)

• उत्सहेत्: could dare / would be able
• Type: Verb
• Root: उत्सह्
• Form: Potential/Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

कर्ण उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Karna

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Karna asserts the supremacy of daiva (destiny) over puruṣakāra (human effort), framing the coming conflict as unavoidable. Ethically, it reflects a deterministic justification that can lessen personal responsibility by presenting events as fated.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Bhīṣma Parva’s war-setting discourse, Karna speaks in a tone of grim certainty, insisting that the battle cannot be averted. His statement functions as a rhetorical push toward accepting and proceeding with the war rather than seeking delay or reconciliation.