Shloka 30

भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः

Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas

Devanagari script

विमुच्य कवचानन्ये पाण्डुपुत्रस्य सैनिका:

Transliteration

vimucya kavacān anye pāṇḍuputrasya sainikāḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: Some of the soldiers of the son of Pāṇḍu, casting off their armor, (acted thus in the midst of battle). The line conveys the extremity of the war-situation—warriors, pressed by fear, fatigue, or urgency, abandon protective gear, revealing both the human vulnerability behind martial duty and the harsh cost of conflict.

Word by Word

• विमुच्य: having cast off / having removed
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि+मुच्
• Form: ल्यप् (क्त्वा-प्रत्ययः), कर्तरि, पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (absolutive/gerund)

• कवचान्: armours, cuirasses
• कवचान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कवच
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• अन्ये: others
• अन्ये: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: अन्य
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• पाण्डुपुत्रस्य: of the son of Pāṇḍu (i.e., of the Pāṇḍava)
• पाण्डुपुत्रस्य: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाण्डुपुत्र
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• सैनिकाः: soldiers
• सैनिकाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: सैनिक
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Pāṇḍuputra (the Pāṇḍava)
• Pāṇḍava soldiers
• kavaca (armor)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even within dharma-yuddha, the battlefield exposes human limits: fear, exhaustion, and desperation can drive warriors to abandon protection. The verse underscores the ethical gravity of war—duty is pursued amid real vulnerability and suffering.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that some soldiers on the Pāṇḍava side threw off their armor during the fighting, indicating intense pressure or disorder in that moment of the battle.