Shloka 49
धर्मरहस्योपदेशः
Dharma-rahasya Instruction: Vows, Truth, and Non-injury
ततः पराजिते कर्णे धातराष्ट्री महाचमूम् । व्यद्रावयद् भीमसेनो यथेन्द्रो दानवान् पुरा
tataḥ parājite karṇe dhārtarāṣṭrīṁ mahācāmūm vyadrāvayad bhīmaseno yathendro dānavān purā
When Karṇa had been defeated, Bhīmasena drove the vast army of the Dhārtarāṣṭras into flight—just as Indra in ancient times routed the Dānavas. The verse frames Bhīma’s onslaught as a righteous, decisive reversal of momentum in battle, likening the Kaurava host to forces of disorder being scattered by a protector of cosmic order.
भीम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the fall of a key champion can collapse an army’s morale, and it presents decisive action in a dharmic war as the restoration of order—symbolized by the Indra–Dānava comparison.
After Karṇa is defeated, Bhīma presses the advantage and drives Duryodhana’s (Dhārtarāṣṭra) large force into retreat, likened to Indra scattering the Dānavas in ancient mythic battles.