Shloka 67
Vāsudeva-Māhātmya: Duryodhana’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Theological Account of Keśava
वरान् वरान् विनिष्नन्तं पाण्डुपुत्रस्य सैनिकान् | युगान्तमिव कुर्वाणं भीष्म॑ यौधिष्ठिरे बले,तदनन्तर महाबाहु श्रीकृष्णने उस समरांगणमें भीष्मका पराक्रम देखकर यह विचार किया कि अर्जुन तो कोमलतापूर्वक युद्ध कर रहा है और भीष्म युद्धस्थलमें निरन्तर बाणोंकी वर्षा कर रहे हैं। ये दोनों सेनाओंके बीचमें आकर तपते हुए सूर्यकी भाँति सुशोभित होते और पाण्डुपुत्र युधिष्ठिरके अच्छे-अच्छे सैनिकोंको चुन-चुनकर मार रहे हैं। युधिष्ठिरकी सेनामें भीष्मने प्रलयकालका-सा दृश्य उपस्थित कर दिया है
varān varān viniṣṇantaṃ pāṇḍuputrasya sainikān | yugāntam iva kurvāṇaṃ bhīṣmaṃ yaudhiṣṭhire bale ||
Sañjaya said: “Bhīṣma was striking down, one after another, the foremost warriors of the son of Pāṇḍu. In Yudhiṣṭhira’s army he was creating a scene like the end of an age—an overwhelming, near-apocalyptic devastation—so that the battle’s moral tension sharpened: the righteous side suffers grievously when restraint meets relentless prowess.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension of dharma in war: even a cause aligned with righteousness can suffer severe losses when met by unmatched skill and resolve. It underscores that moral rightness does not automatically guarantee immediate victory; duty, endurance, and strategic clarity remain essential.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Bhīṣma is cutting down the foremost Pāṇḍava warriors within Yudhiṣṭhira’s forces, creating devastation likened to the ‘end of the age’ (yugānta), i.e., a battlefield scene of overwhelming destruction.