Shloka 63
मैत्रेयागमनम् — The Arrival of Maitreya and the Admonition to Duryodhana
तत एनं परिश्रान्तमुपलक्ष्य वृकोदर: । योक््त्रयामास बाहुभ्यां पशुं रशनया यथा,त॑ विषीदन्तमाज्ञाय राक्षसं पाण्डुनन्दन: । प्रगृह् तरसा दोर्भ्या पशुमारममारयत् उस राक्षसको विषादमें डूबा हुआ जान पाण्डुनन्दन भीमने दोनों भुजाओंसे वेगपूर्वक दबाते हुए पशुकी तरह उसे मारना आरम्भ किया
tata enaṁ pariśrāntam upalakṣya vṛkodaraḥ | yoktrayāmāsa bāhubhyāṁ paśuṁ raśanayā yathā || taṁ viṣīdantam ājñāya rākṣasaṁ pāṇḍunandanaḥ | pragṛhya tarasā dorbhyāṁ paśum āramamārayat ||
Then Vṛkodara (Bhīma), noticing that the rākṣasa had grown weary, bound and restrained him with his arms as one would tether an animal with a rope. Realizing that the demon was sinking into despair and losing strength, the Pāṇḍu’s son seized him with force in both arms and began to kill him as one would dispatch a beast—an act framed by the epic as the necessary subduing of violent, predatory power rather than cruelty for its own sake.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
When destructive, predatory violence threatens order, dharma permits decisive restraint and force. The verse portrays Bhīma’s action not as wanton brutality but as the controlled subjugation of a dangerous being—strength guided toward protection.
Bhīma observes that the rākṣasa is exhausted and despondent. He restrains him tightly with his arms as if tethering an animal, then seizes him with force and begins to kill him, emphasizing Bhīma’s physical power and the urgency of neutralizing the threat.