Shloka 14

Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 50 — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Appraisal of Bhīmasena (भीमसेनभयवर्णनम्)

Devanagari script

अस्त्रे द्रोणार्जुनसमं वायुवेगसमं जवे । महेश्वरसमं क्रोधे को हन्याद्‌ भीममाहवे,वह अस्त्रविद्यामें द्रोणाचार्य तथा अर्जुनके समान है, वेगमें वायुकी समानता करता है एवं क्रोधमें महेश्वरके तुल्य है। ऐसे भीमको युद्धमें कौन मार सकता है?

Transliteration

astre droṇārjunasamaṃ vāyuvegāsamaṃ jave | maheśvarasamaṃ krodhe ko hanyād bhīmam āhave ||

Translation

Dhṛtarāṣṭra sprach: „In der Waffenmeisterschaft ist er Droṇa und Arjuna ebenbürtig; an Schnelligkeit gleicht er dem Wind; und im Zorn ist er Maheśvara vergleichbar. Wer könnte Bhīma also in der Schlacht erschlagen?“

Word by Word

अस्त्रेin weaponry / in the use of weapons

द्रोण-अर्जुन-समम्equal to Drona and Arjuna

वायु-वेग-समम्equal to the speed of the wind

जवेin swiftness

महेश्वर-समम्equal to Maheshvara (Shiva)

क्रोधेin anger

कःwho?

हन्यात्could kill / would kill

भीमम्Bhima

आहवेin battle

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Bhīma

Droṇa

Arjuna

Vāyu

Maheśvara (Śiva)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how extraordinary power—skill, speed, and wrath—can make a warrior seem invincible, and it implicitly warns rulers that fear and misjudgment in the face of such power can drive disastrous decisions in a dharma-crisis.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war deliberations, Dhṛtarāṣṭra reflects on Bhīma’s formidable capabilities, rhetorically asking who could possibly kill him in battle, revealing the Kuru court’s apprehension as war approaches.