Shloka 15

Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 137 — Bhīṣma–Droṇa Counsel and the Ethics of Restraint

Devanagari script

सिंहस्कन्धोरुबाहुस्त्वां वृत्तायतमहाभुज: । परिष्वजतु बाहुभ्यां भीम: प्रहरतां वर:

Transliteration

siṁhaskandhorubāhus tvāṁ vṛttāyatamahābhujaḥ | pariṣvajatu bāhubhyāṁ bhīmaḥ praharatāṁ varaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “Let Bhīma—broad-shouldered like a lion, with mighty arms long and well-rounded, the foremost among those who strike—embrace you with his arms.”

Word by Word

सिंहस्कन्धोरुबाहुःhe whose shoulders and thighs and arms are like a lion’s (i.e., lion-shouldered, strong-armed)

त्वाम्you

वृत्तायतमहाभुजःhe whose great arms are round and long

परिष्वजतुlet (him) embrace

बाहुभ्याम्with (his) two arms

भीमःBhima

प्रहरताम्of those who are striking/attacking

वरःthe best, the foremost

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

Bhīma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even amid impending conflict, the epic highlights gestures of human connection—such as an embrace—as affirmations of kinship and honor, reminding warriors that strength is not only for striking but also for upholding bonds and dignity.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator describes Bhīma’s imposing physique and presents him as a foremost fighter, while indicating that he is to embrace the addressed person—an act that signals greeting, solidarity, or a moment of reconciliation within the tense pre-war setting of the Udyoga Parva.