Shloka 59
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 22 — Draupadī’s Abduction Attempt and Bhīma’s Suppression of the Kīcakas
तयोहासीत् सुतुमुल:ः सम्प्रहार: सुदारुण: । नखदन्तायुधवतोर्व्याच्रयोरिव दृप्तयो:
tayor hāsīt sutumulaḥ samprahāraḥ sudāruṇaḥ | nakhadantāyudhavator vyāghrayor iva dṛptayoḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : Entre ces deux-là s’éleva un affrontement violemment tumultueux et d’une effroyable dureté. N’ayant pour armes que leurs ongles et leurs dents, ils se battirent tels deux tigres ivres d’orgueil, enlacés dans la lutte—image qui met à nu la violence brute et sans retenue qui surgit lorsque la fierté et la force étouffent la maîtrise de soi.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, when pride and aggression dominate, conflict can devolve into primal brutality—symbolized by fighting with nails and teeth like maddened tigers—implying the ethical need for restraint and disciplined force even amid confrontation.
A fierce hand-to-hand struggle breaks out between two opponents. The narrator compares their savage exchange—using nails and teeth as weapons—to two enraged, intoxicated tigers fighting each other.