Shloka 256
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Discourse and the Elephant-Corps Engagement (भीमगजानीक-सम्भ्रान्ति)
रथैरनेकसाहसैर्भीमस्यावारयद् दिश: । अपने पुत्रको मारा गया देख कलिंगराजने कई हजार रथोंके द्वारा भीमसेनकी सम्पूर्ण दिशाओंको रोक लिया
rathair aneka-sāhasair bhīmasyāvārayad diśaḥ |
Sañjaya dit : Voyant son propre fils tué, le roi de Kaliṅga, poussé par le chagrin et la colère, barra toutes les directions autour de Bhīmasena avec plusieurs milliers de chars—une riposte désespérée au cœur du chaos moral de la guerre.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how personal loss in war can rapidly turn into retaliatory action; it implicitly warns that grief and anger can drive escalation, testing dharma even for kṣatriyas bound to fight.
After his son is killed, the king of Kaliṅga responds by deploying many thousands of chariots to block and surround Bhīmasena from all sides, attempting to check his advance on the battlefield.