Shloka 51

Gadāyuddhe Kṛṣṇopadeśaḥ (Kṛṣṇa’s Counsel in the Mace-Duel) — Śalya-parva 57

Devanagari script

ताडयामास संक्रुद्धो वक्षोदेशे महाबल: । जब राजा दुर्योधनने देखा कि भीमसेनकी गदा नीचे गिर गयी और उनका वार खाली गया, तब क्रोधमें भरे हुए महाबली कुरुश्रेष्ठ दुर्योधनने कौशिक मार्गोंका आश्रय ले बार-बार उछलकर भीमसेनको धोखा देकर उनकी छातीमें गदा मारी || ४९-५० है || गदया निहतो भीमो मुहामानो महारणे

Transliteration

tāḍayāmāsa saṅkruddho vakṣodeśe mahābalaḥ | gadayā nihato bhīmo muhā māno mahāraṇe ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: Enraged, the mighty warrior struck Bhīma on the chest. Smitten by the mace, Bhīma, amid that great battle, reeled in bewilderment.

Word by Word

ताडयामासstruck, smote

आमासdid/was (auxiliary forming periphrastic perfect)

संक्रुद्धःenraged, wrathful

वक्षः-देशेin the chest-region

महाबलःmighty, of great strength

गदयाwith a mace

निहतःstruck down, smitten

भीमःBhima

मूढ-मानःbewildered in mind, stunned

महा-रणेin the great battle

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Bhīma (Bhīmasena)

Duryodhana

gadā (mace)

vakṣaḥ (chest)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how anger and the momentum of battle can drive decisive, even destabilizing blows; it also suggests an ethical tension in warfare where raw strength and tactical maneuvering can eclipse steadiness, reminding readers that victory and composure are fragile amid adharma-prone fury.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that Duryodhana, furious, lands a mace-blow on Bhīma’s chest; Bhīma is struck hard and becomes dazed in the great duel, marking a turning point in the intensity of their gadā-yuddha.