Shloka 81
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Discourse and the Elephant-Corps Engagement (भीमगजानीक-सम्भ्रान्ति)
भीम: सप्त शतान् वीराननयद् यमसादनम् । पुनश्चैव द्विसाहस्नान् कलिज्ञानरिमर्दन:
Bhīmaḥ sapta śatān vīrān anayad yamasādanam | punaś caiva dvi-sāhasrān kali-jñāna-rimardanaḥ ||
قال سانجيا: بهيما، ساحق الأعداء، أرسل سبعمائة من الأبطال إلى دار يَما. ثم عاد فأرسل ألفين من رجال كالينغا إلى عالم الموت.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the stark ethical gravity of war: even when a warrior acts within kṣatriya duty, the outcome is mass death. It implicitly urges reflection on the cost of violence and the responsibility that accompanies strength and tactical intelligence.
Sañjaya reports Bhīma’s battlefield exploits: he slays seven hundred enemy warriors and then a further two thousand, describing him with epithets that stress both his destructive power and his keen awareness of the battle’s stratagems.