Shloka 115
तद् रुक्मपृष्ठं भीमस्य धनुर्घोरें महारणे । विकृष्यमाणं विबभौ शक्रचापमिवापरम्,उस महासमरमें सोनेकी पीठवाला भीमसेनका भयंकर धनुष जब खींचा जाता था, तब दूसरे इन्द्रधनुषके समान प्रतीत होता था
tad rukmapṛṣṭhaṃ bhīmasya dhanur ghore mahāraṇe | vikṛṣyamāṇaṃ vibabhau śakracāpam ivāparam ||
Sanjaya said: In that dreadful great battle, Bhima’s bow—gold-backed and fearsome—shone as he drew it, appearing like another rainbow of Indra. The image underscores Bhima’s formidable martial power, presented not as mere violence but as a decisive force within the war’s grim, duty-bound arena.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how epic poetry frames battlefield action through luminous imagery: Bhima’s drawn bow is likened to Indra’s rainbow, conveying awe-inspiring strength. Implicitly, it situates such power within the larger, grim context of kṣatriya-dharma—martial force exercised as part of an ordained duty in a catastrophic war.
Sanjaya describes Bhima in the thick of the great battle. As Bhima draws his gold-adorned bow, it gleams brilliantly, and the sight is compared to a second rainbow—Indra’s bow—emphasizing the visual splendor and the terror of his readiness to strike.