Shloka 77
भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः
Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas
प्राणानादत्त योधानां पिता देवव्रतस्तव
prāṇān ādatta yodhānāṁ pitā devavratas tava
Sañjaya said: Your father Devavrata (Bhīṣma) has taken away the lives of the warriors—cutting them down in battle. The line underscores the grim ethical weight of war: even a revered elder, bound by duty to his side, becomes the instrument of widespread death.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral gravity of warfare: even a venerable figure like Bhīṣma, famed for vows and righteousness, can become a cause of mass death when bound to a battlefield role. It invites reflection on duty (dharma) versus the human cost of fulfilling it.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Devavrata (Bhīṣma), the great elder on the Kaurava side, is killing many warriors in the ongoing Kurukṣetra battle.