Shloka 9

दक्षिणदिशि तीर्थवर्णनम्

Southern Tīrthas: Godāvarī to Dvāravatī

Devanagari script

सर्वे वेदविद: शूरा: सर्वास्त्रविदुषस्तथा । योद्धुकामाश्च पार्थन सततं ये महाबला: । सच दिव्यास्त्रवित्‌ कर्ण: सूतपुत्रो महारथ:,“वे सब-के-सब वेदज्ञ, शूरवीर, सम्पूर्ण अस्त्र-शस्त्रोंके ज्ञाता, महाबली और सदा अर्जुनके साथ युद्धकी अभिलाषा रखनेवाले हैं। वह सूतपुत्र महारथी कर्ण भी दिव्यास्त्रोंका ज्ञाता है

Transliteration

sarve vedavidaḥ śūrāḥ sarvāstraviduṣas tathā | yoddhukāmāś ca pārthena satataṃ ye mahābalāḥ | sa ca divyāstravit karṇaḥ sūtaputro mahārathaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana nói: “Tất cả bọn họ đều là bậc thông hiểu Veda, dũng mãnh, và tinh thông mọi loại binh khí. Họ là những người lực lưỡng, luôn khát khao giao chiến với Pārtha (Arjuna). Và cả Karṇa nữa—con của người đánh xe, một đại chiến xa—cũng là kẻ am tường các thần khí.”

Word by Word

• {'sarve': 'all', 'vedavidaḥ': 'knowers of the Vedas

• those learned in sacred lore', 'śūrāḥ': 'heroes

• brave warriors', 'sarvāstra-viduṣaḥ': 'skilled/learned in all weapons and missiles (astra)', 'tathā': 'likewise

• also', 'yoddhu-kāmāḥ': 'desirous of fighting', 'pārthena': 'with Pārtha (Arjuna), son of Pṛthā', 'satatam': 'always

• continually', 'ye': 'who', 'mahābalāḥ': 'very powerful

• of great strength', 'sa ca': 'and he too', 'divya-astra-vit': 'knower of divine weapons/missiles', 'karṇaḥ': 'Karna', 'sūta-putraḥ': 'son of a sūta (charioteer/bard lineage)

• epithet used for Karna', 'mahā-rathaḥ': 'great chariot-warrior

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Pārtha (Arjuna)
• Karṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how learning (Vedic knowledge) and martial skill can coexist in the warrior ideal, while also warning implicitly that prowess and sacred learning do not by themselves guarantee righteous intent—here they are directed toward relentless rivalry and the desire for battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana is describing a group of formidable warriors—learned, brave, and expert in weapons—who are eager to fight Arjuna; he specifically adds that Karṇa, famed as a mahāratha, also knows divine astras, underscoring the scale of the threat and the intensity of the conflict.