Shloka 4
भीमसेनस्य आत्मबलप्रशंसा — Bhīmasena’s Assertion of Strength
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 74
श्रीभगवानुवाच त्वमन्यदा भीमसेन युद्धमेव प्रशंससि । वधाभिनन्दिन: क्रूरान् धार्तराष्ट्रानू मिमर्दिषु:,श्रीभगवान् बोले--भैया भीमसेन! आजके सिवा और दिन तो तुम हिंसासे ही प्रसन्न होनेवाले क्रूर धृतराष्ट्रप््न्रोंको मसल डालनेकी इच्छा मनमें लेकर सदा युद्धकी ही प्रशंसा किया करते थे
śrībhagavān uvāca tvam anyadā bhīmasena yuddham eva praśaṃsasi | vadhābhinandinaḥ krūrān dhārtarāṣṭrān mumardiṣuḥ |
The Blessed Lord said: “O Bhīmasena, on other days you used to praise nothing but war, keeping in your mind the wish to crush the cruel sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra—men who delight in slaughter.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral tension between righteous duty and the lure of violence: even when war may seem inevitable, delighting in killing and cruelty is ethically censured, and one’s inner intention matters as much as outward action.
The speaker (the Blessed Lord, addressing Bhīma) recalls Bhīma’s earlier stance—his habitual praise of war and his intent to crush the Kauravas, described as cruel and fond of slaughter—setting up a contrast with the present moment and framing the ethical stakes of the coming conflict.