Shloka 9
Chapter 59: Baladeva’s Censure, Keśava’s Restraint, and Yudhiṣṭhira’s Moral Accounting
सो<वाप्य वैरस्य परस्य पारं वृकोदर: प्राह शनै: प्रहस्य । युधिष्ठटिरं केशवसृज्जयांश्व धनंजयं माद्रवतीसुतीौ च,इस प्रकार भारी वैरसे पार होकर भीमसेन धीरे-धीरे हँसते हुए युधिष्ठिर, श्रीकृष्ण, सूंजयगण, अर्जुन तथा माद्रीकुमार नकुल-सहदेवसे बोले--
so 'vāpy vairasya parasya pāraṃ vṛkodaraḥ prāha śanaiḥ prahasya | yudhiṣṭhiraṃ keśava-sṛñjayāṃś ca dhanañjayaṃ mādravatī-sutau ca ||
Sañjaya said: Even after crossing to the far shore of that fierce enmity, Vṛkodara (Bhīma) spoke—slowly, with a faint smile—to Yudhiṣṭhira, to Keśava (Kṛṣṇa), to the Sṛñjayas, to Dhanañjaya (Arjuna), and to the twin sons of Mādrī (Nakula and Sahadeva). The moment frames Bhīma’s controlled speech after violence: the war’s hatred has been endured and surpassed, yet the ethical weight of what has been done still hangs over the victors.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights measured speech and self-control after extreme conflict: even when one has ‘crossed beyond’ the height of enmity through victory, one must still speak thoughtfully before elders and allies, mindful of dharma and the moral residue of war.
Sañjaya narrates that Bhīma, having come through the fiercest phase of hostility, addresses the Pāṇḍava leaders and allies—Yudhiṣṭhira, Kṛṣṇa, the Sṛñjayas, Arjuna, and the twins—slowly and with a restrained smile, setting up his ensuing words in the aftermath of battle.