Shloka 46

Devanagari script

नागायुतबलो मानी तेजसा न स मानुष: । राजेन्द्र! भीमसेन तो अकेले आठ रथियोंके बराबर हैं। गदा और बाणोंद्वारा किये जानेवाले युद्धमें उनके समान दूसरा कोई योद्धा नहीं है। उनमें दस हजार हाथियोंका बल है। वे बड़े ही मानी तथा अलौकिक तेजसे सम्पन्न हैं

Transliteration

nāgāyutabalo mānī tejasā na sa mānuṣaḥ | rājendra! bhīmasenaḥ sa eko 'pi aṣṭa-rathī-samo bhavati | gadā-bāṇa-kṛte yuddhe tasya sadṛśo 'nyo na vidyate | tasmin daśa-sahasra-gaja-balaṃ, sa mahā-mānī cālaukika-tejasā samanvitaḥ ||

Translation

ભીષ્મ બોલ્યા— હે રાજેન્દ્ર! ભીમસેનમાં દસ હજાર હાથીઓનું બળ છે. તે માની છે અને અલૌકિક તેજથી દીપ્ત—માત્ર માનવ નથી. ભીમ એકલો જ આઠ મહારથીઓના સમાન છે. ગદા અને બાણના યુદ્ધમાં તેના સમો બીજો કોઈ યોદ્ધા નથી।

Word by Word

नागायुतबलःhaving the strength of ten thousand elephants

मानीproud, high-spirited

तेजसाby/with (his) splendor, energy

नnot

सःhe

मानुषःa human (mere man)

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Bhimasena (Bhima)

Rājendra (the king addressed; Dhritarashtra in context)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The passage underscores realistic appraisal of strength in dharmic statecraft: a ruler must recognize extraordinary capability in opponents and allies, avoiding arrogance and making decisions grounded in truth rather than wishful thinking.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma is advising the Kuru king by describing Bhima’s exceptional might—equal to many elite chariot-warriors and unmatched with mace and arrows—warning that the Pandava side contains forces that cannot be dismissed.