Shloka 116
कर्णपर्व — पञ्चदशोऽध्यायः | Karṇa Parva, Chapter 15: Pāṇḍya’s Advance and Aśvatthāmā’s Counterstroke
त्रैलोक्यविजये यद्वद् दैत्यानां सह वज्रिणा | अर्जुन और संशप्तकोंका वह घोर युद्ध त्रैलोक्य-विजयके लिये वज्रधारी इन्द्रके साथ घटित हुए दैत्योंके संग्रामके समान रोंगटे खड़े कर देनेवाला था
sañjaya uvāca | trailokyavijaye yadvad daityānāṃ saha vajriṇā | arjuna-saṃsaptakānāṃ ca tad ghoraṃ yuddham āsīt trailokya-vijayārthaṃ vajradhāriṇā indreṇa saha daityānāṃ saṅgrāma-sadṛśaṃ romaharṣaṇam |
Sañjaya nói: Như thuở chinh phục ba cõi, bọn Daitya từng giao chiến cùng Đấng cầm lôi chùy Indra, thì trận chiến ghê rợn giữa Arjuna và các Saṃsaptaka cũng giống cuộc đụng độ cổ xưa ấy—dữ dội đến mức khiến người ta dựng tóc gáy.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse heightens the ethical and emotional gravity of kṣatriya warfare: vows and duty drive warriors into conflicts of near-cosmic intensity. By comparing a human battlefield to Indra’s mythic struggle, it suggests that steadfastness in one’s pledged role (even amid terror) is central to the epic’s vision of dharma in war.
Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the ferocious clash between Arjuna and the Saṃsaptakas. He likens it to a legendary battle involving Indra (the thunderbolt-bearer) and the Daityas during a ‘conquest of the three worlds,’ emphasizing how terrifying and extraordinary the fighting appears.