वधप्राप्तं तु माद्रेयं नावधीत् समरे ऽरिहा ॥
कुन्त्याः स्मृत्वा वचो राजन् सत्यसंधो महारथः ॥
सहदेवस् ततो राजन् विमनाः शरपीडितः ॥
कर्णवाक्शल्यतप्तश् च जीवितान् निरविद्यत ॥
आरुरोह रथं चापि पाञ्चाल्यस्य महात्मनः ॥
जनमेजयस्य समरे त्वरायुक्तो महारथः ॥
विराटं सहसेनं तु द्रोणार्थे द्रुतम् आगतम् ॥
मद्रराजः शरौघेण छादयाम् आस धन्विनम् ॥
vadhaprāptaṃ tu mādreyaṃ nāvadhīt samare 'rihā ||
kuntyāḥ smṛtvā vaco rājan satyasaṃdho mahārathaḥ ||
sahadevas tato rājan vimanāḥ śarapīḍitaḥ ||
karṇavākśalyataptaś ca jīvitān niravidyata ||
āruroha rathaṃ cāpi pāñcālyasya mahātmanaḥ ||
janamejayasya samare tvarāyukto mahārathaḥ ||
virāṭaṃ sahasenaṃ tu droṇārthe drutam āgatam ||
madrarājaḥ śaraugheṇa chādayām āsa dhanvinam ||
So having spoken to him, Karna, best of warriors, advanced on his chariot against the armies of the Panchalas and Pandavas, as though smirking. Though the son of Madri was near death, the foe-slayer did not kill him in battle, remembering Kunti's word, O king -- true to his vow, a great warrior. Sahadeva then, O king, dejected, tormented by arrows and scorched by the sting of Karna's words, grew weary of life. And he mounted the chariot of the great-souled Panchala prince Janamejaya in battle, hastily, the great warrior.
829af8b80654 · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:49:34 PM UTC
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Here a hidden nobility in Karna is revealed: he spares Sahadeva, remembering the promise given to Kunti -- not to kill her sons, save Arjuna. It is telling that beneath the mocker's mask lies a man true to his word. The verse teaches that even in an adversary a hidden honor may live; the one taken for a mere haughty foe may still keep a secret fidelity to what was promised -- and a person's true worth is often revealed precisely where no one sees it and no one offers praise for it.