Karna Parva · Adhyaya 30

Karna Mounts His Chariot with Shalya as Charioteer

Duryodhana tells Karna that Shalya will drive his chariot as Matali drives Indra's, and asks Shalya once more to rein in Karna's horses; Shalya agrees. Karna has the chariot worshipped, honours the sun, and Shalya and Karna mount it, shining like the sun and fire. Duryodhana urges Karna to do what Bhishma and Drona could not, and Karna calls for the horses to be driven; Shalya warns him not to scorn the Pandavas, but Karna brushes the warning aside.

Adhyaya 29 All adhyayas Adhyaya 31

दुर्योधन उवाच · Duryodhana said

Verse 1 (8.30.1)

अयं ते कर्ण सारथ्यं मद्रराजः करिष्यति । कृष्णादभ्यधिको यन्ता देवेशस्येव मातलिः ॥

ayaṃ te karṇa sārathyaṃ madrarājaḥ kariṣyati | kṛṣṇādabhyadhiko yantā deveśasyeva mātaliḥ

Karna, this king of Madras will be your charioteer, a driver better than Krishna, as Matali is for the lord of the gods.

Note on the text: Line 1 reads देवेशस्येव where the CE has devendrasyeva; a recension variant, Wikisource's reading kept.

Verse 2 (8.30.2)

यथा हरिहयैर्युक्तं सङ्गृह्णाति स मातलिः । शल्यस्तथा तवाद्यायं संयन्ता रथवाजिनाम् ॥

yathā harihayairyuktaṃ saṅgṛhṇāti sa mātaliḥ | śalyastathā tavādyāyaṃ saṃyantā rathavājinām

As Matali takes the reins of the chariot yoked to Indra's horses, so today Shalya will be the controller of your chariot's horses.

Verse 3 (8.30.3)

योधे त्वयि रथस्थे च मद्रराजे च सारथौ । रथश्रेष्ठो ध्रुवं सङ्ख्ये पार्थानभिभविष्यति ॥

yodhe tvayi rathasthe ca madrarāje ca sārathau | rathaśreṣṭho dhruvaṃ saṅkhye pārthānabhibhaviṣyati

With you, the warrior, on the chariot and the king of Madras as charioteer, you, foremost of chariot-fighters, will surely overcome the Parthas in battle.

Note on the text: Line 2 reads रथश्रेष्ठो ध्रुवं सङ्ख्ये पार्थानभिभविष्यति where the CE has rathaśreṣṭho dhruvaṃ saṃkhye pārtho nābhibhaviṣyati ("Partha will not overcome"); a recension variant, Wikisource's reading kept.

सञ्जय उवाच · Sanjaya said

Verse 4 (8.30.4)

ततो दुर्योधनो भूयो मद्रराजं तरस्विनम् । उवाच राजन्सङ्ग्रामेऽध्युषिते पर्युपस्थिते ॥

tato duryodhano bhūyo madrarājaṃ tarasvinam | uvāca rājansaṅgrāme'dhyuṣite paryupasthite

Then, O king, at daybreak, with the battle at hand, Duryodhana spoke again to the mighty king of Madras:

Note on the text: Line 2 reads सङ्ग्रामेऽध्युषिते पर्युपस्थिते, the CE star line 8.26.4c*0296_01 ('dhyuṣite paryupasthite; the first words are lost in the CE) in place of the main text's saṃgrāme saṃyacchantaṃ hayottamān.

दुर्योधन उवाच · Duryodhana said

Verse 5 (8.30.5)

कर्णस्य यच्छ सङ्ग्रामे मद्रराज हयोत्तमान् । त्वयाऽभिगुप्तो राधेयो विजेष्यति धनञ्जयम् ॥

karṇasya yaccha saṅgrāme madrarāja hayottamān | tvayā'bhigupto rādheyo vijeṣyati dhanañjayam

"Rein in the finest horses for Karna in the battle, O king of Madras; guarded by you, Radheya will conquer Dhananjaya."

Note on the text: Line 1 is the CE star line 8.26.4c*0296_02 (karṇasya yaccha saṃgrāme), completed here with मद्रराज हयोत्तमान्; line 2 is CE 8.26.5a (राधेयो विजेष्यति धनञ्जयम्). The automatic alignment found no match. Direct speech of Duryodhana to Shalya, unheaded in the text; given to him as speaker.

सञ्जय उवाच · Sanjaya said

Verse 6 (8.30.6)

इत्युक्तो रथमास्थाय तथेति प्राह भारत । शल्येऽभ्युपगते कर्णः सारथिं सुमनाऽब्रवीत् ॥

ityukto rathamāsthāya tatheti prāha bhārata | śalye'bhyupagate karṇaḥ sārathiṃ sumanā'bravīt

Thus addressed, he took up the chariot and said, "So be it," O Bharata. When Shalya had agreed, Karna, glad at heart, said to his charioteer:

Note on the text: Line 1 is CE 8.26.5c and line 2 is CE 8.26.6a (the Wikisource couplets are shifted one line against the CE). The automatic alignment found no match.

Verse 7 (8.30.7)

त्वं सूत स्यन्दनं मह्यं कल्पयेत्यसकृत्त्वरन् ॥

tvaṃ sūta syandanaṃ mahyaṃ kalpayetyasakṛttvaran

Hurrying, he said to him again and again, "Charioteer, make my chariot ready."

Note on the text: One-line verse in Wikisource: it is CE 8.26.6c (the couplets are shifted one line against the CE); Wikisource reads त्वं सूत where the CE has svaṃ sūta (a recension variant). Nothing is lost. The automatic alignment found no match.

Verse 8 (8.30.8)

ततो जैत्रं रथवरं गन्धर्वनगरोपमम् । विधिवत्कल्पितं भद्रं जयेत्युक्त्वा न्यवेदयत् ॥

tato jaitraṃ rathavaraṃ gandharvanagaropamam | vidhivatkalpitaṃ bhadraṃ jayetyuktvā nyavedayat

Then he presented the best of chariots, the victorious one, like a city of the Gandharvas, duly made ready and auspicious, with the words "Victory!"

Verse 9 (8.30.9)

तं रथं रथिनां श्रेष्ठः कर्णोऽभ्यर्च्य यथाविधि । सम्पादितं ब्रह्मविदा पूर्वमेव पुरोधसा ॥

taṃ rathaṃ rathināṃ śreṣṭhaḥ karṇo'bhyarcya yathāvidhi | sampāditaṃ brahmavidā pūrvameva purodhasā

Karna, best of chariot-warriors, worshipped that chariot according to rule, which the priest, a knower of Brahman, had made ready beforehand.

Verse 10 (8.30.10)

कृत्वा प्रदक्षिणं यत्नादुपस्थाय च भास्करम् । समीपस्थं मद्रराजमारोह त्वमथाब्रवीत् ॥

kṛtvā pradakṣiṇaṃ yatnādupasthāya ca bhāskaram | samīpasthaṃ madrarājamāroha tvamathābravīt

Having carefully circumambulated it and paid homage to the sun, he then said to the king of Madras, who stood near, "Mount."

Note on the text: Line 2 reads समीपस्थं मद्रराजमारोह त्वमथाब्रवीत् where the CE has samīpasthaṃ madrarājaṃ samāropayad agrataḥ (similarity 0.829); a recension variant, Wikisource's reading kept.

Verse 11 (8.30.11)

ततः कर्णस्य दुर्धर्षं स्यन्दनप्रवरं महत् । आरुरोह महातेजाः शल्यः सिंह इवाचलम् ॥

tataḥ karṇasya durdharṣaṃ syandanapravaraṃ mahat | āruroha mahātejāḥ śalyaḥ siṃha ivācalam

Then the greatly energetic Shalya mounted Karna's mighty, unassailable, best of chariots, like a lion climbing a mountain.

Verse 12 (8.30.12)

ततः शल्याश्रितं दृष्ट्वा कर्णः स्वं रथमुत्तमम् । अध्यतिष्ठद्यथाऽम्भोदं विद्युत्वन्तं दिवाकरः ॥

tataḥ śalyāśritaṃ dṛṣṭvā karṇaḥ svaṃ rathamuttamam | adhyatiṣṭhadyathā'mbhodaṃ vidyutvantaṃ divākaraḥ

Then, seeing his excellent chariot occupied by Shalya, Karna mounted it, as the sun mounts a cloud charged with lightning.

Verse 13 (8.30.13)

तावेकरथमारूढावादित्याग्निसमत्विषौ । अभ्राजेतां यथा मेघं सूर्याग्नी सहितौ दिवि ॥

tāvekarathamārūḍhāvādityāgnisamatviṣau | abhrājetāṃ yathā meghaṃ sūryāgnī sahitau divi

Mounted on one chariot, those two, radiant as the sun and fire, shone like the sun and fire together in a cloud in the sky.

Verse 14 (8.30.14)

संस्तूयमानौ तौ वीरौ तदास्तां द्युतिमत्तमौ । ऋत्विक्सदस्यैरिन्द्राग्नी स्तूयमानाविवाध्वरे ॥

saṃstūyamānau tau vīrau tadāstāṃ dyutimattamau | ṛtviksadasyairindrāgnī stūyamānāvivādhvare

Praised, those two heroes were exceedingly radiant, like Indra and Agni praised by the priests and members of the assembly at a sacrifice.

Note on the text: Corrected स्तूयमानाविवाध्यरे → स्तूयमानाविवाध्वरे (misprint in Wikisource; य for व, a broken conjunct; CE ādhvare). Line 2 reads स्तूयमानौ ("being praised") where the CE has hūyamānau ("being invoked"); a recension variant, Wikisource's reading kept.

Verse 15 (8.30.15)

स शल्यसङ्गृहीताश्वे रथे कर्णः स्थितो बभौ । धनुर्विष्फारयन्घोरं परिवेषीव भास्करः ॥

sa śalyasaṅgṛhītāśve rathe karṇaḥ sthito babhau | dhanurviṣphārayanghoraṃ pariveṣīva bhāskaraḥ

With Shalya holding the horses, Karna stood on the chariot, stretching his terrible bow, and shone like the sun in its halo.

Verse 16 (8.30.16)

आस्थितः स रथश्रेष्ठं कर्णः शरगभस्तिमान् । प्रबभौ पुरुषव्याघ्रो मन्दरस्थ इवांशुमान् ॥

āsthitaḥ sa rathaśreṣṭhaṃ karṇaḥ śaragabhastimān | prababhau puruṣavyāghro mandarastha ivāṃśumān

Standing on the best of chariots, Karna, with his arrows for rays, shone, that tiger among men, like the sun upon Mount Mandara.

Verse 17 (8.30.17)

तं रथस्थं महाबाहुं युद्धायामिततेजसम् । दुर्योधनस्तु राधेयमिदं वचनमब्रवीत् ॥

taṃ rathasthaṃ mahābāhuṃ yuddhāyāmitatejasam | duryodhanastu rādheyamidaṃ vacanamabravīt

Then Duryodhana spoke these words to Radheya, standing on his chariot, mighty-armed, of boundless energy for the fight:

Note on the text: Corrected युद्वाय → युद्धाय (misprint in Wikisource; द्व for द्ध, a broken conjunct). Wikisource reads महाबाहुं युद्धायामिततेजसम् where the CE has mahāvīraṃ yāntaṃ cāmitatejasam; a recension variant, Wikisource's reading kept.

दुर्योधन उवाच · Duryodhana said

Verse 18 (8.30.18)

अकृतं द्रोणभीष्माभ्यां दुष्करं कर्म संयुगे । कुरुष्वाधिरथे वीर मिषतां सर्वधन्विनाम् ॥

akṛtaṃ droṇabhīṣmābhyāṃ duṣkaraṃ karma saṃyuge | kuruṣvādhirathe vīra miṣatāṃ sarvadhanvinām

Do, hero, son of Adhiratha, in the sight of all the archers, the hard deed in battle that Drona and Bhishma did not do.