Shloka 41
Book 10, Adhyāya 12: Aśvatthāmā’s Request for the Cakra and the Brahmaśiras Context
स संरम्भी दुरात्मा च चपल: क्रूर एव च । वेद चास्त्रं ब्रह्मशिरस्तस्माद् रक्ष्यो वृकोदर:,“वह क्रोधी, दुष्टात्मा, चपल और क्रूर है। साथ ही उसे ब्रह्मास्त्रका भी ज्ञान है; अतः उससे भीमसेनकी रक्षा करनी चाहिये”
sa saṃrambhī durātmā ca capalaḥ krūra eva ca | veda cāstraṃ brahmaśirastasmād rakṣyo vṛkodaraḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “He is impetuous in wrath, wicked at heart, fickle, and indeed cruel. Moreover, he knows the weapon called Brahmaśiras; therefore Vṛkodara (Bhīma) must be carefully protected from him.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that moral corruption combined with mastery of catastrophic weapons makes a person exceptionally dangerous; dharma in such a context requires vigilance and protective responsibility toward those at risk.
Vaiśampāyana characterizes a hostile figure as wrathful, wicked, fickle, and cruel, and notes his knowledge of the Brahmaśiras weapon; on that basis he urges that Bhīma (Vṛkodara) be guarded against him.