Shloka 4
य: कुञज्जराणामधिकं सहस्् हत्वा नद्दंस्तुमुलं सिंहनादम् । काम्बोजानामयुतं पर्वतीयान् मृगान् सिंहो विनिहत्येव चाजौ,जो यथासमय शत्रुओंको पीड़ा देते हुए युद्धस्थलमें उन समस्त शौर्यसम्पन्न भूपतियों, प्रधान-प्रधान रथियों, श्रेष्ठ गजराजों, प्रमुख अश्वारोहियों, असंख्य वीरों, सहस्रसे भी अधिक हाथियों, दस हजार काम्बोजदेशीय अश्वों तथा पर्वतीय वीरोंका वध करके जैसे मृगोंको मारकर सिंह दहाड़ रहा हो, उसी प्रकार भयंकर सिंहनाद करते हैं, जो वीर भीमसेन हाथमें गदा ले रथसे कूदकर उसके द्वारा रणभूमिमें हाथी, घोड़ों एवं रथोंका संहार करते हैं तथा ऐसा अत्यन्त दुष्कर पराक्रम प्रकट कर रहे हैं जैसा कि तू कभी नहीं कर सकता, जिनका पराक्रम इन्द्रके समान है, जो उत्तम खड़्ग, चक्र और धनुषके द्वारा हाथी, घोड़ों, पैदल- योद्धाओं तथा अन्यान्य शत्रुओंको दग्ध किये देते हैं और जो पैरोंसे कुचलकर दोनों हाथोंसे वैरियोंका विनाश करते हैं, वे महाबली, कुबेर और यमराजके समान पराक्रमी एवं शत्रुओंकी सेनाका बलपूर्वक संहार करनेमें समर्थ भीमसेन ही मेरी निन्दा करनेके अधिकारी हैं। तू मेरी निन्दा नहीं कर सकता; क्योंकि तू अपने पराक्रमसे नहीं, हितैषी सुहृदोंद्वारा सदा सुरक्षित होता है
yaḥ kuñjarāṇām adhikaṁ sahasraṁ hatvā naddhaṁstumulaṁ siṁhanādam | kāmbojānām ayutaṁ parvatīyān mṛgān siṁho vinihatyeva cājau | yo yathāsamayaṁ śatrūn pīḍayan raṇabhūmau tān sarvān śauryasampannān bhūpatīn pradhāna-pradhāna-rathīn śreṣṭha-gajarājān pramukhāśvārōhīn asaṅkhyān vīrān sahasrād api adhikān hastinaḥ daśasahasra-kāmbojāśvān ca parvatīya-vīrāṁś ca hatvā mṛgān iva siṁhaḥ nadati | sa vīro bhīmasenaḥ gadāṁ pāṇau gṛhītvā rathāt plutyā raṇe hastyaśvarathān saṁharati; tādṛśaṁ ca atiduṣkaraṁ parākramaṁ darśayati yad tvaṁ kadācana na kartum arhasi | yasya parākrama indrasamaḥ, yaḥ uttama-khaḍga-cakra-dhanurbhiḥ hastyaśvapadātīn anyāṁś ca śatrūn dagdhīkaroti, yaś ca pādābhyāṁ mṛdnann ubhābhyāṁ bāhubhyāṁ vairiṇāṁ vināśaṁ karoti | sa mahābalī kubera-yamasama-parākramaḥ śatrusenāyā balavat-saṁhāre samarthaḥ bhīmasena eva mama nindāṁ kartum adhikārī; tvaṁ tu mama nindāṁ na kartum arhasi, yataḥ tvaṁ svaparākramāt na, kintu hitaiṣi-suhṛdbhiḥ sadā rakṣyase
Arjuna said: “He who, after slaying more than a thousand elephants, roars a dreadful lion-cry amid the tumult of battle; who has cut down ten thousand Kamboja horses and the mountain fighters, like a lion striking down deer in the field—he, at the proper moment, tormenting the enemy, has destroyed on the battlefield those valorous kings, the foremost chariot-warriors, the best lordly elephants, the leading horsemen, and countless heroes. That warrior Bhimasena, grasping his mace and leaping down from his chariot, lays waste to elephants, horses, and chariots, displaying a feat of strength so hard that you could never accomplish it. His prowess is like Indra’s; with excellent sword, discus, and bow he burns down elephants, horses, foot-soldiers, and other foes; trampling with his feet and crushing with both arms, he brings enemies to ruin. That mighty Bhima—equal in power to Kubera and Yama, capable of forcibly annihilating the enemy host—alone is entitled to censure me. You cannot censure me, for you are protected not by your own valor, but always by well-wishing friends.”
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral authority to criticize must be earned through demonstrated excellence and integrity. Arjuna argues that only a truly proven hero like Bhima—who bears the burden of battle through his own strength—has standing to reproach him, whereas a person sustained chiefly by others’ protection lacks that ethical right.
In the midst of the Karna Parva battle, Arjuna responds to reproach by contrasting the unmatched battlefield feats of Bhima (slaughtering elephants, cavalry, and chariots with a lion-like roar) with the opponent’s dependence on supportive allies. Arjuna concludes that Bhima alone could legitimately criticize him, not the one addressing him.