Shloka 13

Adhyāya 74 (Book 6, Bhīṣma-parva): Bhīma–Duryodhana re-engagement and afternoon escalation

Devanagari script

भीमसेन और भीष्मका युद्ध अथ काम्बोजजैरश्लैर्महद्धिः शीघ्रगामिभि: । गोपानां बहुसाहसैब्बलैगोंपायनैर्वृत:ः

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | atha kāmboja-jaiḥ aśvaiḥ mahadbhir hi śīghra-gāmibhiḥ | gopānāṃ bahu-sāhasaiḥ balaiḥ gopāyanaiḥ vṛtaḥ | tataḥ paścāt kāmboja-rājaḥ sudakṣiṇaḥ kāmboja-deśīyān viśālān evaṃ śīghra-gāminaḥ aśvān āruhya yuddhāya niryayau | tena sārdhaṃ gopāyana-nāmānaḥ aneke sahasrāṇi gopa-sainikāḥ āsan ||

Translation

त्यानंतर काम्बोजांचा राजा सुदक्षिण, विशाल व वेगवान काम्बोज घोड्यांवर आरूढ होऊन, गोपायन नावाच्या अत्यंत धाडसी गोप-सैनिकांच्या अनेक सहस्रांनी वेढलेला, युद्धासाठी पुढे सरकला.

Word by Word

• अथ: then/now
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ

• काम्बोजैः: by/with the Kambojas
• काम्बोजैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: काम्बोज
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• अश्वैः: with horses
• अश्वैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अश्व
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• महद्भिः: with great/large (ones)
• महद्भिः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महत्
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• शीघ्रगामिभिः: with swift-moving (ones)
• शीघ्रगामिभिः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शीघ्रगामिन्
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• गोपानाम्: of the cowherds/guards (gopas)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोप
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• बहुसाहसैः: with very daring (ones)
• बहुसाहसैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहुसाहस
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• बलैः: with forces/troops
• बलैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: बल
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• गोपायनैः: with (those) named Gopāyana
• गोपायनैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोपायन
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• वृतः: surrounded
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृत
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular, Past passive participle (क्त), from √वृ (वृणोति/वृ) 'to cover/surround'

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Bhīmasena
• Bhīṣma
• Kāmboja
• Sudakṣiṇa (Kāmboja-rāja)
• Gopāyana troops
• Horses (Kāmboja steeds)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights martial virtues—speed, strength, and daring—while implicitly reminding the reader that such virtues are ethically charged in the Mahābhārata: courage and discipline are admirable, yet their use in war must be weighed against dharma and the consequences of violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the Kāmboja contingent: King Sudakṣiṇa mounts swift, powerful horses and advances to fight, accompanied by many thousands of bold Gopāyana gopa-soldiers, as the broader battle (including Bhīma and Bhīṣma’s fighting) unfolds.