Shloka 55
Adhyāya 65: Dawn Assembly, Makara–Śyena Vyūhas, and Commander Engagements
मेदोरुधिरदिग्धाड़ो वसामज्जासमुक्षित: । व्यचरत् समरे भीमो दण्डपाणिरिवान्तक:
sañjaya uvāca | medorudhiradigdhāṅgo vasāmajjāsamukṣitaḥ | vyacarat samare bhīmo daṇḍapāṇir ivāntakaḥ ||
قال سَنجايا: كان بِهيما ملطّخاً بالشحم والدم، مغموراً كأنه اغتسل بالنخاع والدهن؛ يمشي في ساحة القتال والهراوة في يده، كأنّه «أنتَكَ» جالبُ الموت، قابضٌ على عصا العقاب.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical weight of warfare: when battle turns into mass killing, the warrior’s role can resemble punitive cosmic justice (daṇḍa). It evokes the idea that adharma invites terrifying retribution, and that violence, even when duty-bound, carries a grim moral atmosphere.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Bhīma is roaming the battlefield in a fearsome state—his body smeared with blood and fat, soaked in grease and marrow—brandishing his weapon and appearing like Yama (Antaka), the personification of death and punishment.