Shloka 22
Bhagadattā’s Deployment Against Ghaṭotkaca; Elephant-Corps Escalation
पराजितस्य भीमेन निपपात शिरो महीम्,भीमसेनसे पराजित हुए अपराजितका मस्तक धरतीपर जा गिरा। तत्पश्चात् भीमसेनने एक-दूसरे भल्ल्लके द्वारा सब लोगोंके देखते-देखते महारथी कुण्डधारको यमराजके लोकमें भेज दिया
sañjaya uvāca | parājitasya bhīmena nipapāta śiro mahīm | tatpaścāt bhīmasenena anyonyena bhallakena sarvalokasya paśyataḥ mahārathī kuṇḍadhārakaḥ yamalokaṃ preṣitaḥ |
Sañjaya dit : Vaincu par Bhīma, la tête du guerrier défait tomba sur la terre. Puis, sous les yeux de tous, Bhīmasena, d’une autre flèche acérée, envoya le grand combattant de char Kuṇḍadhāraka au royaume de Yama. Le vers souligne la finalité implacable du karma sur le champ de bataille : prouesse et résolution tranchent entre vie et mort, et le témoignage public rend victoire comme chute également indéniables.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the uncompromising reality of righteous warfare as understood in the epic: in battle, defeat culminates in death, and the warrior’s fate is publicly witnessed. It implicitly points to the gravity of kṣatriya action—victory and killing are not private acts but carry social and moral weight, demanding responsibility and steadiness.
Sañjaya reports that Bhīma defeats an opponent so decisively that the fallen warrior’s head drops to the ground. Immediately afterward, Bhīma shoots another arrow and, in full view of the assembled fighters, kills the great warrior Kuṇḍadhāraka, sending him to Yama’s realm.