Shloka 77
Kirmīra-rākṣasa-saṃgamaḥ (Encounter and Slaying of Kirmīra) | किर्मीरेण सह भीमसेनसमागमः
नाधिज्यमपि यच्छक्यं कर्तुमन्येन गाण्डिवम् । अन्यत्रार्जुनभीमाभ्यां त्वया वा मधुसूदन,मधुसूदन! अर्जुनके पास जो गाण्डीव धनुष है, उसपर अर्जुन, भीम अथवा आपके सिवा दूसरा कोई प्रत्यंचा भी नहीं चढ़ा सकता (तो भी ये मेरी रक्षा न कर सके)
nādhijyam api yac chakyaṃ kartum anyena gāṇḍīvam | anyatrārjuna-bhīmābhyāṃ tvayā vā madhusūdana ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “Even to string the Gāṇḍīva bow is not possible for anyone else—except Arjuna and Bhīma, or you, O Madhusūdana. (And yet, despite such unmatched prowess, they could not protect me.)”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Extraordinary strength and skill do not guarantee protection in every circumstance; the verse underscores human limitation and the sense that outcomes may exceed mere prowess, prompting reflection on fate, dharma, and the need for higher guidance.
The speaker emphasizes the unique, almost exclusive ability to string Arjuna’s famed bow, naming Arjuna, Bhīma, and Kṛṣṇa as exceptions—then contrasts that unmatched capability with the lament that, despite such power, protection still failed in the situation being recounted.