Mahabharata — Bhishma Parva, Shloka 10
भीमसेनस्य प्रतिघातः—भगदत्तगजप्रहारः—घटोत्कचमायायुद्धम्
Bhīma’s Counteroffensive, Bhagadatta’s Elephant Assault, and Ghaṭotkaca’s Māyā Engagement
कारूष, विकुंज, मुण्ड और कुण्डीवृष आदि योद्धा राजा बृहदबलके साथ बायें पंखके स्थानमें खड़े हुए ।।
vyūḍhaṃ dṛṣṭvā tu tat sainyaṃ savyasācī parantapaḥ | dhṛṣṭadyumnena sahitaḥ pratyavyūhat saṃyuge ||
Sañjaya said: Seeing that army drawn up in battle formation, Arjuna—renowned as Savyasācī, the ambidextrous archer and a scorcher of foes—took his stand in the fight together with Dhṛṣṭadyumna and counter-arrayed his forces to meet it. He formed a most dreadful crescent-shaped array; and on its rightward point Bhīmasena shone.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores responsible action under dharma in wartime: when the opponent has already assumed a battle formation, a leader must respond with disciplined strategy rather than panic or cruelty—meeting force with organized defense to protect one’s side.
Sañjaya narrates that Arjuna observes the enemy army arranged in a vyūha and, accompanied by Dhṛṣṭadyumna, forms a counter-formation (pratyavyūha) on the battlefield to confront the Kaurava deployment.
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