Shloka 32
Chapter 136: Pandava Counter-Encirclement and the Vāyavya-Astra Disruption
स भीमस्त्रिभिरायत्त: सूतपुत्रं पतत्त्रिभि:
sa bhīmas tribhir āyattaḥ sūtaputraṃ patattribhiḥ
Sañjaya said: Bhīma, having been struck by three (weapons) and thus pressed hard, in turn assailed the charioteer’s son (Karna) with three swift-flying missiles—meeting force with force in the fierce ethics of battlefield retaliation.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
In the battlefield frame of the Mahābhārata, the verse highlights the kṣatriya ethic of measured response: when assailed, a warrior answers with comparable force, maintaining resolve under pressure.
Sañjaya reports that Bhīma, having been struck by three weapons, counters by striking Karṇa (called ‘Sūtaputra’) with three swift missiles/arrows.