Shloka 55
भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः
Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas
नामृष्यत महाबाहुर्माधव: परवीरहा,तब शत्रुवीरोंका नाश करनेवाले महाबाहु माधवको यह सहन नहीं हुआ। आर्य! वे योगेश्वर भगवान् वासुदेव चाँदीके समान सफेद रंगवाले अर्जुनके घोड़ोंको छोड़कर उस विशाल रथसे कूद पड़े और केवल भुजाओंका ही आयुध लिये हाथोंमें चाबुक उठाये बारंबार सिंहनाद करते हुए बलवान् एवं तेजस्वी श्रीहरि भीष्मकी ओर बड़े वेगसे दौड़े
sañjaya uvāca | nāmṛṣyata mahābāhur mādhavaḥ paravīrahā | tadā śatruvīrāṇāṃ nāśaṃ kartum asahyaṃ tasya babhūva | ārya! sa yogeśvaro bhagavān vāsudevaḥ rajatasadṛśaśvetavarṇān arjunasya hayān vihāya tasmād mahārathāt praskandya kevalaṃ bhujāyudho hastayoḥ kaśāṃ gṛhītvā punaḥ punaḥ siṃhanādaṃ kurvan balavān tejasvī śrīhariḥ bhīṣmaṃ prati mahāvegād dhāvamānaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Mighty-armed Mādhava, the slayer of enemy-heroes, could not endure it. O noble one, the Lord Vāsudeva—master of yoga—leapt down from that great chariot, leaving behind Arjuna’s horses, white as silver. Taking only his own arms as weapons and grasping the whip in his hands, repeatedly roaring like a lion, the powerful and radiant Śrī Hari rushed at great speed toward Bhīṣma—driven by the resolve to end the devastation wrought by the enemy’s champions and to uphold the righteous course of the battle.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the divine charioteer, committed to restraint, may act decisively when dharma is endangered: righteous resolve can require stepping beyond prior self-imposed limits to protect the just cause and prevent unchecked destruction.
Seeing the battle situation become intolerable, Kṛṣṇa (Mādhava/Vāsudeva) leaps from Arjuna’s chariot, leaving the horses, seizes the whip, roars like a lion, and charges at Bhīṣma with great speed—signaling an urgent, dramatic intervention in the fight.