Shloka 8
Rājasūya-sambhāra: Prosperity under Rājadharma and the Initiation of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Sacrifice
ततो मत्स्यान् महातेजा मलदांश्व महाबलान्
tato matsyān mahātejā maladāṁś ca mahābalān | tatpaścāt mahātejasvī kuntīkumaras tadā | matsyān maladān anaghābhayasaṁjñitān janapadān jitvā paśubhūmim api sarvataḥ parājitya | tataḥ pratinivṛtya mahābāhur bhīmo madadhāraparvataṁ somadheyanivāsinaś ca parājitya | tataḥ paraṁ balavān bhīma uttarābhimukhaṁ yātrāṁ kṛtvā vatsabhūmau balāt svāmitvaṁ cakāra ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは語った。ついで光輝と大力を備えたビーマは、マツヤ族と強大なマラダ族を屈服させた。その後、名高きクンティーの子は、アナガとアバヤと呼ばれる国々を征し、さらにパシュブーミを四方から制圧した。そこから帰ると、大腕のビーマはマダダーラ山の周辺に住む者たちとソーマデーヤの民を打ち破った。やがて勇士ビーマは北へ軍を進め、武力によってヴァツァの地に支配を打ち立てた。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the acquisition of sovereignty through strength during a royal campaign, while the broader epic context frames such power as legitimate only when aligned with rightful rule and restraint—conquest is a means to political order, not an end in itself.
Bhīma, as part of the Pāṇḍavas’ campaign connected with Yudhiṣṭhira’s imperial project, subdues several regions—Matsya, Malada, Anagha, Abhaya, Paśubhūmi—then defeats groups near Madadhāra and Somadheya, and finally establishes control over Vatsa by marching north.