Shloka 12

Devanagari script

शैले5स्मिन्‌ राक्षसाकीर्णे दुर्गेषु विषमेषु च । इयं चापि महाभागा राजपुत्री पतिव्रता,फिर सहदेवके, मेरे तथा द्रौपदीके लिये तो कहना ही क्या है? भारत! ये ब्राह्मणलोग चाहें तो यहाँसे लौट सकते हैं। समस्त सेवक, सारथि, रसोइये तथा हममेंसे और जिस- जिसको आप लौटाना उचित समझें-वे सभी जा सकते हैं। राक्षसोंसे भरे हुए इस पर्वतपर तथा ऊँचे-नीचे दुर्गम प्रदेशोंमें मैं आपको कदापि अकेला छोड़ना नहीं चाहता। नरश्रेष्ठ! यह परम सौभाग्यवती पतिव्रता राजकुमारी कृष्णा भी आपको छोड़कर लौटनेको कभी तैयार न होंगी। इसी प्रकार यह सहदेव भी आपमें सदा अनुराग रखनेवाला है, आपको छोड़कर कभी नहीं लौटेगा। मैं इसके मनकी बात जानता हूँ। महाराज! सव्यसाची अर्जुनको देखनेकी इच्छासे हम सभी लालायित हो रहे हैं; अत: सब साथ ही चलेंगे। राजन! अनेक कन्दराओंसे युक्त इस पर्वतपर यदि रथोंके द्वारा यात्रा सम्भव न हो तो हम पैदल ही चलेंगे। आप इसके लिये उदास न हों। जहाँ-जहाँ द्रौपदी नहीं चल सकेगी वहाँ-वहाँ मैं स्वयं इसे कंधेपर चढ़ाकर ले जाऊँगा

Transliteration

śaile 'smin rākṣasākīrṇe durgeṣu viṣameṣu ca | iyaṃ cāpi mahābhāgā rājaputrī pativratā |

Translation

Bhīma said: “On this mountain, crowded with rākṣasas, and in these rugged, uneven, hard-to-cross tracts, I will not leave you alone. And this most fortunate princess—noble-born and steadfast in wifely fidelity—will never consent to abandon you and return. In such perilous terrain, our duty is to remain together: protection of the vulnerable, loyalty to kin, and steadfastness in adversity outweigh personal comfort. Even if travel by chariot becomes impossible in these cave-filled heights, we will proceed on foot; and wherever Draupadī cannot go, I will carry her myself.”

Word by Word

शैलेon the mountain

अस्मिन्in this

राक्षसby/with demons

आकीर्णेfilled, crowded

दुर्गेषुin difficult/fortified places

विषमेषुin uneven/rough (places)

चand

इयम्this (woman)

चalso/and

अपिalso, even

महाभागाvery fortunate/noble

राजपुत्रीking's daughter, princess

पतिव्रताdevoted to her husband

Speaker

भीम उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīma

Draupadī (Kṛṣṇā)

Sahadeva

Arjuna (Savyasācin)

rākṣasas

mountain (śaila)

caves (kandarāḥ) (contextual from passage)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

In danger and hardship, dharma is expressed through solidarity: the strong protect the weak, companions do not abandon one another, and fidelity and loyalty are upheld even when comfort and safety are threatened.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīma reassures the leader (implicitly Yudhiṣṭhira) that in a rākṣasa-infested, difficult mountain region they will not leave him alone; Draupadī will not turn back, Sahadeva will remain devoted, and if chariots cannot pass they will walk—Bhīma even offering to carry Draupadī where needed as they press on to see Arjuna.