Shloka 63
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Discourse and the Elephant-Corps Engagement (भीमगजानीक-सम्भ्रान्ति)
पातयामास खड्गेन सध्वजानपि पाण्डव: । महाबली पाण्डुनन्द्न भीम उछलकर कितने ही रथियोंके पास पहुँच जाते और उन्हें पकड़कर ध्वजोंसहित तलवारसे काट गिराते थे ।। ६२ ह ।। मुहुरुत्पततो दिक्षु धावतश्च॒ यशस्विन:
sañjaya uvāca | pātayāmāsa khaḍgena sadhvajān api pāṇḍavaḥ | mahābalī pāṇḍunandana bhīmaḥ muhur utpatataḥ dikṣu dhāvataś ca yaśasvinaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: The Pandava—mighty Bhima, the son of Pandu—kept striking down with his sword even chariots together with their standards. Again and again he would leap in different directions and rush about, closing in on many chariot-warriors, seizing them and cutting them down along with their banners—an image of relentless battlefield prowess and the grim momentum of a war fought in the name of dharma.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kshatriya ideal of fearless exertion in a dharmic war: disciplined courage, swift initiative, and unwavering effort. Ethically, it also underscores the harsh reality that even righteous conflict carries destructive force, demanding responsibility and restraint from those who fight.
Sanjaya describes Bhima’s ferocious advance: he repeatedly leaps and rushes in all directions, reaches groups of chariot-warriors, and strikes down their chariots along with the standards using his sword, portraying his overwhelming momentum on the battlefield.