Shloka 78

कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira

Devanagari script

जानाति त॑ पाण्डव एष चापि पापं लोके कर्णमसहामन्यै: । ततस्त्वमुक्तो भृशरोषितेन राज्ञा समक्षं परुषाणि पार्थ

Transliteration

jānāti taṃ pāṇḍava eṣa cāpi pāpaṃ loke karṇam asahām anyaiḥ | tatas tvam ukto bhṛśaroṣitena rājñā samakṣaṃ paruṣāṇi pārtha ||

Translation

噢，般度之子，他也知道：在这世间，罪业深重的迦尔那，除你之外无人能忍受与之对阵。因此，噢，帕尔塔，那位国王——被炽烈的怒火攫住——就在我面前对你说出了严厉刻薄之言。

Word by Word

• {'jānāti': 'knows, understands', 'pāṇḍava': 'O son of Pandu

• a Pandava (vocative)', 'eṣa': 'this one

• he (near demonstrative)', 'cāpi': 'and also', 'pāpam': 'sinful, wicked (accusative singular)', 'loke': 'in the world (locative singular)', 'karṇam': 'Karna (accusative singular)', 'asahām': 'unendurable, impossible to bear/face (accusative singular masculine)', 'anyaiḥ': 'by others

• for others (instrumental plural)', 'tataḥ': 'therefore

• from that (reason)', 'tvam': 'you', 'uktaḥ': 'addressed

• spoken to (past passive participle)', 'bhṛśa-roṣitena': 'by one greatly enraged (instrumental singular)', 'rājñā': 'by the king (instrumental singular)', 'samakṣam': 'in the presence of

• before (me/others)', 'paruṣāṇi': 'harsh (words)

• rough, bitter utterances (accusative plural neuter)', 'pārtha': 'O Partha

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyudeva
• Pāṇḍava (Arjuna/Partha)
• Karna
• the king (rājā; contextually Yudhiṣṭhira)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights two ethical points: (1) recognition of unique responsibility—only Arjuna is seen as capable of confronting Karna; and (2) the moral danger of anger—Yudhiṣṭhira’s rage leads to harsh speech, implying the need for restraint even amid justified fear and wartime pressure.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva explains to Arjuna why the king spoke bitterly: the king knows that Karna is a formidable, harmful opponent whom others cannot withstand, so in agitation and desperation he vented harsh words at Arjuna in Vāyudeva’s presence.