Shloka 57
भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः
Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas
अभिदुद्राव भीष्मं स भुजप्रहरणो बली । प्रतोदपाणिस्तेजस्वी सिंहवद् विनदन् मुहुः
abhidudrāva bhīṣmaṁ sa bhujapraharaṇo balī | pratodapāṇis tejasvī siṁhavad vinadan muhuḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: Maka ia—yang kuat dan bercahaya—menerjang Bhīṣma dengan hanya kedua lengannya sebagai senjata. Cambuk di tangan, ia mengaum seperti singa berulang kali. Setelah meninggalkan kuda-kuda Arjuna yang putih laksana perak dan melompat turun dari kereta perang besar itu, Vāsudeva (Mādhava), sang penguasa yoga, tak lagi sanggup menahan pembantaian para kesatria, lalu berlari menuju Bhīṣma dengan kecepatan dahsyat.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
When dharma is in immediate danger, mere formal adherence to a prior resolve may be outweighed by the higher duty to protect life and righteousness. Kṛṣṇa’s lion-like charge—apparently risking his own vow—highlights that ethical action is judged by its deeper purpose (lokasaṅgraha and protection of the just), not only by external consistency.
As Bhīṣma devastates the opposing warriors, Kṛṣṇa can no longer tolerate the slaughter. He leaps from Arjuna’s chariot, takes up the whip, and charges at Bhīṣma unarmed except for his own strength, roaring like a lion—an intense moment of divine intervention and moral urgency on the battlefield.