Shloka 24
Rājarṣi-samāgamaḥ — Yudhiṣṭhirasya Dharma-parīkṣā ca
Meeting the Royal Sage and a Dharmic Audit
तं च भीम॑ महात्मानं तस्यास्तीरे मनस्विनम् । ददृशुर्निहतांश्चैव यक्षांश्व विपुलेक्षणान्,उसके तटपर मनस्वी महामना भीमको तथा उनके द्वारा मारे गये बड़े-बड़े नेत्रोंवाले यक्षोंको भी देखा--जिनके शरीर, नेत्र, भुजाएँ और जाँचें छिन्न-भिन्न हो गयी थीं, गर्दन कुचल दी गयी थी, महात्मा भीम उस सरोवरके तटपर खड़े थे
taṃ ca bhīmaṃ mahātmānaṃ tasyās tīre manasvinam | dadṛśur nihatāṃś caiva yakṣāṃś ca vipulekṣaṇān |
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: They saw Bhīma—high-souled and resolute—standing on the bank of that lake; and they also saw the Yakṣas he had slain, great beings with wide eyes, lying struck down. The scene underscores Bhīma’s fierce strength when roused, while also foreshadowing the moral boundary he has crossed by meeting the lake’s guardians with violence rather than restraint.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power without restraint leads to harm and moral peril. The verse highlights Bhīma’s might, but the surrounding episode emphasizes that dharma is upheld not by force alone, but by self-control, respect for rightful guardianship, and wise response to challenge.
The narrator reports that the observers (the arriving Pāṇḍavas in context) see Bhīma standing at the lake’s bank and also see the Yakṣas he has killed. It is a moment of discovery that sets the stage for the ensuing ethical and spiritual test associated with the lake and its guardian.