Shloka 17
कर्णस्य दानप्रतिज्ञा–शल्योपदेश–वाक्ययुद्धम्
Karna’s Gift-Vows, Shalya’s Counsel, and the Battle of Words
रथी नागं समासाद्य दारयन् निशितै: शरै: । प्रेषयामास कालाय शरै: संनतपर्वभि:,रथी हाथीका सामना करके झुकी हुई गाँठवाले तीखे बाणोंद्वारा उसे विदीर्ण करते हुए कालके गालमें भेजने लगे
rathī nāgaṃ samāsādya dārayan niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ | preṣayāmāsa kālāya śaraiḥ saṃnataparvabhiḥ ||
Sañjaya thưa: Chiến xa dũng sĩ áp sát con voi và xé toạc nó bằng những mũi tên sắc như dao—những mũi tên có các đốt cong—liên tiếp đẩy nó vào chính hàm của Thần Chết.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the stark reality of war: prowess and resolve can swiftly turn into an instrument of Kāla (death/time). Ethically, it invites reflection on how violence, even when performed as kṣatriya-duty, carries an inescapable gravity—life is ‘sent to Death’ by human action within the larger current of fate.
Sañjaya describes a chariot-warrior advancing on an elephant and piercing it with very sharp arrows, described as having bent joints (saṃnata-parva). The elephant is being mortally wounded—figuratively ‘dispatched to Kāla,’ i.e., killed in battle.