Mahabharata — Virata Parva, Shloka 41
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 22 — Draupadī’s Abduction Attempt and Bhīma’s Suppression of the Kīcakas
पूर्वांगतं ततस्तत्र भीममप्रतिमौजसम् । एकान्तावस्थितं चैनमाससाद स दुर्मति:
pūrvāṅgataṃ tatastatra bhīmam apratimaujasam | ekāntāvasthitaṃ cainam āsasāda sa durmatiḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : Or Bhīma, d’une puissance sans égale, était arrivé le premier et gisait à l’écart, dans la solitude. Kīcaka, l’esprit pervers, le rejoignit là et se mit à le tâter de la main. En ce moment, Bhīmasena brûlait de colère, attisée par l’outrage que Kīcaka avait infligé à Draupadī.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames righteous protection of the vulnerable as a dharmic duty: when honor is violated and coercion is attempted, moral force may be required, but it should arise from justice and protection—not from mere rage or desire.
Bhīma has reached the secluded spot first and lies in wait. Kīcaka, driven by lust and arrogance after offending Draupadī, arrives and gropes in the darkness, unaware he has found Bhīma—who is already burning with anger and ready to punish him.