Shloka 2

Karṇa–Sūrya Saṃvāda: Satya, Dāna, and the Amoghā Śakti (कर्ण–सूर्यसंवादः)

Devanagari script

रावण: संविध॑ चक्रे लड़कायां शास्त्रनिर्मिताम्‌ । प्रकृत्यैव दुराधर्षा दृढप्राकारतोरणा,इधर रावण लंकामें शास्त्रोक्त प्रकारसे बनी हुई युद्ध-सामग्री (मशीनगन आदि)-का संग्रह करने लगा। लंकाकी चहारदीवारी और नगर-द्वार अत्यन्त सुदृढ़ थे; अतः स्वभावसे ही वह दुर्धर्ष थी--किसी भी आक्रमणकारीका वहाँ पहुँचना अत्यन्त कठिन था

Transliteration

rāvaṇaḥ saṃvidhaṃ cakre laṅkāyāṃ śāstra-nirmitām | prakṛtyaiva durādharṣā dṛḍha-prākāra-toraṇā ||

Translation

Mārkaṇḍeya nói: Rāvaṇa đã sắp đặt trong Laṅkā những công sự và khí cụ chiến tranh được chế tạo theo các quy định của śāstra. Tự bản tính, Laṅkā vốn khó công phá—tường lũy và cổng thành vô cùng kiên cố—khiến bất cứ kẻ tấn công nào cũng cực khó tiếp cận và vượt qua.

Word by Word

• {'rāvaṇaḥ': 'Rāvaṇa (proper name), the rākṣasa king', 'saṃvidham': 'arrangement, preparation, organization (of measures/defenses)', 'cakre': 'made, carried out, instituted', 'laṅkāyām': 'in Laṅkā (locative)', 'śāstra-nirmitām': 'constructed according to śāstra

• made by prescribed methods/technical treatises', 'prakṛtyā eva': 'by nature itself

• inherently', 'durādharṣā': 'hard to assail, difficult to overpower', 'dṛḍha': 'firm, strong, solid', 'prākāra': 'rampart, enclosing wall, fortification', 'toraṇā': 'gateway, gate-arch, main entrance structure'}

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Rāvaṇa
• Laṅkā
• fortifications (prākāra)
• gateways (toraṇa)
• śāstra-prescribed war apparatus/defenses

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Technical preparedness and ‘śāstra-based’ organization can strengthen worldly power, but it does not confer righteousness. The verse implicitly contrasts external security (walls and gates) with the ethical insecurity of adharma: strong defenses may delay defeat, not avert the moral consequences of wrongful intent.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya describes Rāvaṇa arranging and stockpiling Laṅkā’s war-defenses according to prescribed methods. Laṅkā is portrayed as naturally formidable due to its strong ramparts and gateways, making it difficult for enemies to attack or even reach.