Shloka 13
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय ७२: सैन्यगुणवर्णनम्, व्यूहरक्षा, दैव-पुरुषकारचिन्ता
प्रविश्य तु रणे भीमो मकरं मुखतस्तदा । भीष्ममासाद्य संग्रामे छादयामास सायकै:,तदनन्तर भीमसेनने रणक्षेत्रमें प्रवेश करके मकर-व्यूहके मुखभागमें खड़े हुए भीष्मको अपने सायकोंसे आच्छादित कर दिया
praviśya tu raṇe bhīmo makaraṁ mukhatas tadā | bhīṣmam āsādya saṅgrāme chādayāmāsa sāyakaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Then Bhīma entered the thick of battle and, reaching Bhīṣma who stood at the very front of the Makara formation, he covered him in the fight with a dense shower of arrows. The scene underscores the fierce duty of warriors on the battlefield—meeting even the most revered elder as an opponent when dharma has led both sides to war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when an opponent is venerable (like Bhīṣma), a warrior bound by kṣatriya-dharma must act decisively in battle once the conflict is joined; reverence and duty can collide, and the epic highlights the gravity of such choices.
Bhīma enters the battlefield and advances to the front of the Makara battle-array, where Bhīṣma is positioned, and he attacks him intensely by covering him with a volley of arrows.