Shloka 19
भीमस्य जलान्वेषणं तथा वनविश्रान्तिः
Bhīma’s Search for Water and the Forest Halt
दुर्योधनो विकर्णश्न सुबाहुर्दीर्घलोचन:
vaiśampāyana uvāca | duryodhano vikarṇaś ca subāhur dīrghalocanaḥ duḥśāsanaś ca te sarve krodhāviṣṭāḥ śarāsanāḥ śaravarṣaṃ pracakrire | tataḥ sa trūpado rājā mahādhanuḥ ajeyarathaḥ tair bāṇair abhisaṃvṛtaḥ kṣaṇenaiva tadā sarvāḥ senāḥ saṃpīḍya vyathayām āsa | sa cālātacakravad digbhyaḥ parivartamānaḥ duryodhanaṃ vikarṇaṃ mahābalaṃ karṇaṃ bahūn vīrān rājaputrān tathā teṣāṃ vividhāḥ senāḥ śaraiḥ santarpayām āsa ||
Vaiśampāyana dijo: Duryodhana, Vikarṇa, Subāhu, Dīrghalocana y Duḥśāsana—poseídos por la ira—comenzaron a descargar una lluvia de flechas. Entonces el rey Drupada, gran arquero cuyo carro no era fácil de abatir en batalla, aunque gravemente herido por sus saetas, de inmediato apremió y atormentó a todas sus fuerzas. Girando en todas direcciones como un tizón encendido hecho girar en círculo, sació con flechas a Duryodhana, a Vikarṇa, al poderoso Karṇa, a muchos príncipes heroicos y a sus diversas tropas.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights two intertwined lessons: anger (krodha) propels warriors into relentless violence, while disciplined courage can remain effective even when wounded. Yet both operate within the severe framework of kṣatriya-dharma, where prowess and endurance are praised but the moral cost of wrath-driven combat is implicitly visible.
Duryodhana and his allies unleash a heavy arrow-shower. Drupada, though badly hurt, immediately counterattacks with exceptional skill, moving like a whirling firebrand and striking Duryodhana, Vikarṇa, Karṇa, many princes, and their troops with repeated volleys.