Shloka 26
कर्णपर्व — अध्याय ४०
Karṇa’s Pressure on the Pāñcālas; Duryodhana Disabled; Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
उड्डीनमवडीनं च प्रडीनं डीनमेव च । निडीनमथ संडीनं तिर्यक् डीनगतानि च
uḍḍīnam avaḍīnaṃ ca praḍīnaṃ dīnam eva ca | niḍīnam atha saṃḍīnaṃ tiryak dīna-gatāni ca
迦迦说道：“有向上飞的，有向下飞的，有向前飞掠的，也有彻底坠落的；有入巢栖止的，有聚集成群的，也有横向而行的——这些都是‘堕者’的种种状态与行迹。”
काक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a catalog of movements and states—rising, descending, wandering, nesting, clustering—to suggest that external motion or circumstance is variable and morally neutral; ethical value depends on inner steadiness and dharmic conduct rather than mere worldly position.
The crow (Kāka) speaks in a didactic tone, listing different ‘courses’ or conditions observed among creatures, as part of a larger moral reflection meant to guide judgment and behavior amid changing fortunes.