महर्षय: कृपायुक्ता: क्रोधाविष्टोडथ भार्गव: । स मे5हरदमेयात्मा शरं कालानलोपमम्
maharṣayaḥ kṛpāyuktāḥ krodhāviṣṭo ’tha bhārgavaḥ | sa me ’harad ameyātmā śaraṃ kālānalopamam ||
Bhīṣma said: “The great seers, moved by compassion, intervened; but then the Bhārgava (Paraśurāma), seized by anger—his spirit immeasurable—took from me that arrow, an arrow like the fire of Time itself.”
भीष्म उवाच
Compassionate counsel (kṛpā) seeks to prevent harm, but anger (krodha) can override even venerable authority and turn power into destruction; ethical strength lies in restraint and right use of force.
Bhīṣma recounts that compassionate sages were present, yet Paraśurāma—overcome by anger—took from Bhīṣma a fearsome arrow likened to the fire of Time, highlighting the escalating danger of the confrontation.