Mahabharata — Karna Parva, Shloka 40
प्रयाहि वृद्धिं च दिशन्तु देवता यथाहमिच्छामि तवास्तु तत् तथा | प्रयाहि शीघ्रं जहि कर्णमाहवे पुरंदरो वृत्रमिवात्मवृद्धये
prayāhi vṛddhiṃ ca diśantu devatā yathāham icchāmi tavāstu tat tathā | prayāhi śīghraṃ jahi karṇam āhave puraṃdaro vṛtram ivātmavṛddhaye ||
Sañjaya nói: “Hãy lên đường; nguyện chư thiên ban cho ngươi phúc thịnh. Điều ta mong cho ngươi, nguyện đều thành đúng như vậy. Hãy tiến nhanh và giết Karṇa nơi chiến địa—như Indra, bậc Purandara, đã diệt Vṛtra để tăng thêm quyền uy của chính mình.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames battlefield action through a divine precedent: victory is urged not merely as personal prowess but as a sanctioned, goal-oriented act. At the same time, the comparison to Indra killing Vṛtra ‘for his own increase’ highlights the moral tension in war—how appeals to divine models can be used to justify violence and political advantage.
Sañjaya delivers an exhortation to advance swiftly and kill Karṇa in battle, blessing the addressee with divine favor and success. He reinforces the urgency and legitimacy of the act by invoking the mythic example of Indra (Puraṃdara) slaying Vṛtra to secure and expand his own sovereignty.