अभिशापाच् च रामस्य ब्राह्मणस्य च भाषणात् ॥
करणानां वियोगाच् च तेन मे ऽर्धरथो मतः ॥
नैष फल्गुनम् आसाद्य पुनर् जीवन् विमोक्ष्यते ॥
संजय उवाच
ततो ऽब्रवीन् महाबाहुर् द्रोणः शस्त्रभृतां वरः ॥
एवम् एतद् यथात्थ त्वं न मिथ्यास्तीति किं चन ॥
रणे रणे ऽतिमानी च विमुखश् चैव दृश्यते ॥
घृणी कर्णः प्रमादी च तेन मे ऽर्धरथो मतः ॥
एतच् छ्रुत्वा तु राधेयः क्रोधाद् उत्फुल्ललोचनः ॥
उवाच भीष्मं राजेन्द्र तुदन् वाग्भिः प्रतोदवत् ॥
पितामह यथेष्टं मां वाक्शरैर् उपकृन्तसि ॥
अनागसं सदा द्वेषाद् एवम् एव पदे पदे ॥
मर्षयामि च तत् सर्वं दुर्योधनकृतेन वै ॥
abhiśāpāc ca rāmasya brāhmaṇasya ca bhāṣaṇāt ||
karaṇānāṃ viyogāc ca tena me 'rdharatho mataḥ ||
naiṣa phalgunam āsādya punar jīvan vimokṣyate ||
saṃjaya uvāca
tato 'bravīn mahābāhur droṇaḥ śastrabhṛtāṃ varaḥ ||
evam etad yathāttha tvaṃ na mithyāstīti kiṃ cana ||
raṇe raṇe 'timānī ca vimukhaś caiva dṛśyate ||
ghṛṇī karṇaḥ pramādī ca tena me 'rdharatho mataḥ ||
etac chrutvā tu rādheyaḥ krodhād utphullalocanaḥ ||
uvāca bhīṣmaṃ rājendra tudan vāgbhiḥ pratodavat ||
pitāmaha yatheṣṭaṃ māṃ vākśarair upakṛntasi ||
anāgasaṃ sadā dveṣād evam eva pade pade ||
marṣayāmi ca tat sarvaṃ duryodhanakṛtena vai ||
Because of Rama's curse, because of the brahmin's words, and because of the loss of his means of action, he is, in my view, a half-ratha. Once he meets Phalguna, he will not escape alive. Sanjaya said: Then the mighty-armed Drona, foremost among bearers of weapons, said: 'It is exactly as you say; there is no falsehood in it. In every battle Karna is seen to be excessively proud, evasive, overly compassionate, and careless; therefore I too consider him a half-ratha.' Hearing this, Radheya, his eyes wide with anger, said to Bhishma, O lord of kings, stinging him with words as with a goad: 'Grandfather, as you please, you constantly cut me, innocent as I am, with arrows of words, out of sheer hatred, at every step. And all this I endure for Duryodhana's sake.'
b3825c1ae80d · published Jul 17, 2026, 6:32:37 AM UTC
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In this chapter the hidden rift within the Kaurava camp becomes visible. Bhishma calls Karna a half-ratha not out of simple dislike: he is pointing to the loss of Karna's natural armor, to the curses laid on him, and to his unreliability at the decisive moment. But Karna hears this as public humiliation and answers even more destructively, calling into question Bhishma's very ability to judge warriors. Thus, on the eve of war, the weakness of Duryodhana's side becomes apparent: an outwardly immense army is already cracking from within, undone by pride, rivalry, and an inability to accept the truth.