Shloka 5
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 50 — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Appraisal of Bhīmasena (भीमसेनभयवर्णनम्)
अमर्षणश्न कौन्तेयो दृढ्वैरश्न॒ पाण्डव: । अनर्महासी सोन्मादस्तिर्यक्प्रेक्षी महास्वन:
amarṣaṇaḥ kaunteyo dṛḍhavairaḥ sa pāṇḍavaḥ | anarmahāsī sa unmādas tiryakprekṣī mahāsvanaḥ ||
Dhritarashtra dit : «Bhima, ce fils de Kuntī parmi les Pāṇḍava, ne supporte pas l’affront et s’attache à une inimitié tenace. Son rire n’est pas simple plaisanterie : il le rend vrai. Fier et impétueux de nature, il regarde de biais et rugit d’une voix formidable.»
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how unchecked wrath and fixed enmity harden into a character trait: words and even laughter become vows. Ethically, it warns that a warrior’s power must be governed by restraint; otherwise resolve turns into destructive obsession.
In Udyoga Parva’s pre-war negotiations and assessments, Dhṛtarāṣṭra describes Bhīma’s formidable temperament—his intolerance of insult, unwavering hostility, intimidating gaze, and thunderous roar—underscoring why reconciliation is difficult and why conflict seems imminent.