Shloka 74
भीष्मशिबिरगमनम् — Duryodhana’s Visit to Bhīṣma’s Camp and the Command Appeal
ततो बहुविधेनगिश्छादयामास राक्षसम्,तदनन्तर उसने बहुत-से नागोंद्वारा राक्षषको आच्छादित कर दिया। नागोंद्वारा आच्छादित होनेपर उस राक्षसराजने कुछ सोच-विचारकर गरुड़का रूप धारण कर लिया और समस्त नागोंको भक्षण करना आरम्भ किया
sa jaya uv01ca |
tato bahuvidhair nāgaiś chādayāmāsa rākṣasam |
tadānantara sa bahubhir nāgair āvṛto rākṣasarājo vicārya garuḍarūpa dhṛtvā samastān nāgān bhakṣayitum ārabdhavān |
Sañjaya said: Then he covered the rākṣasa with many kinds of serpents. Thereafter, when the lord of the rākṣasas found himself enveloped by countless nāgas, he reflected for a moment, assumed the form of Garuḍa, and began to devour all the serpents.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights a battlefield ethic of adaptability: when overwhelmed, a powerful being shifts form and method to neutralize the threat. It also reflects the Mah01bh01rata s recurring motif that unchecked force invites an equal or greater counter-force, often escalating violence rather than resolving it through restraint.
A r01k 63asa is smothered/covered by many nāgas. In response, the r01k 63asar01ja thinks quickly, assumes Garu 0da s form (the natural enemy of serpents), and begins devouring the nāgas.