अध्याय ८० — मध्यंदिन-रणवृत्तान्तः
Yudhiṣṭhira–Śrutāyu encounter; Cekitāna–Gautama clash; Abhimanyu pressure; Arjuna’s redeployment
ततः कृतास्त्रास्ते सर्वे परिवार्य वृकोदरम् | अभीता: समवर्तन्त शस्त्रवृष्ट्या परंतप
tataḥ kṛtāstrās te sarve parivārya vṛkodaram | abhītāḥ samavartanta śastravṛṣṭyā parantapa ||
Sañjaya sprach: Dann umringten all jene Krieger, kundig im Gebrauch der Waffen, Vṛkodara (Bhīma). Furchtlos stürmten sie gegen ihn an und überschütteten ihn mit einem Regen aus Geschossen und Waffen.
संजय उवाच
The verse highlights the battlefield ethic of the kṣatriya sphere: disciplined skill (kṛtāstra) joined to fearlessness (abhīta) drives direct engagement. It also implicitly warns how collective aggression and encirclement can intensify violence, testing a warrior’s steadiness and resolve.
Sañjaya reports that the Kaurava fighters, proficient with weapons, close in from all sides around Bhīma (Vṛkodara) and attack him together, pelting him with a dense barrage of weapons as they charge.