Shloka 26
Śānti-parva Adhyāya 3: Karṇa’s training under Rāma Jāmadagnya and the Bhārgava restriction on the Brahmāstra
तमुवाच ततः कर्ण: शापाद् भीत: प्रसादयन् । ब्रद्माक्षत्रान्तरे जात॑ सूतं मां विद्धि भार्गव
tam uvāca tataḥ karṇaḥ śāpād bhītaḥ prasādayan | brāhma-kṣatrāntare jātaṃ sūtaṃ māṃ viddhi bhārgava ||
于是迦尔纳因诅咒而惶恐，欲求宽恕而说道：“噢，婆尔伽瓦啊，请知我生来为苏多族，非婆罗门亦非刹帝利。”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical cost of concealing one’s identity for personal gain: fear of the curse forces truth into the open, showing that knowledge pursued through deception becomes morally precarious and invites consequences.
Karṇa, alarmed by Paraśurāma’s curse, tries to pacify him by confessing his birth-status, stating that he is a Sūta rather than a Brahmin or Kshatriya, thereby revealing the deception that triggered the curse.