Shloka 31
भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः
Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas
प्रकीर्य केशान् धावन्त: प्रत्यदृश्यन्त सर्वशः । पाण्डुपुत्र युधिष्ठिरके दूसरे सैनिक कवच उतारकर केश बिखेरे हुए सब ओर भागते दिखायी देते थे ।। ३० ह ।। तद् गोकुलमिवोद्शभ्रान्तमुद्भ्रान्तरथकूबरम्
sañjaya uvāca | prakīrya keśān dhāvantaḥ pratyadṛśyanta sarvaśaḥ | pāṇḍuputra yudhiṣṭhirake dūsare sainikakavaca utārakara keśa bikhere hue saba ora bhāgate dikhāī dete the || 30 ha || tad gokulam ivodbhāntam udbhāntarathakūbaram ||
Sañjaya berkata: Dengan rambut terurai kusut, mereka kelihatan berlari ke segala arah. Dalam angkatan Yudhiṣṭhira, putera Pāṇḍu, askar-askar lain—setelah menanggalkan baju zirah—juga tampak melarikan diri di semua sisi, rambut terlerai kerana panik. Bala tentera itu kelihatan seperti sebuah penempatan penggembala lembu (Gokula) yang porak-peranda, dengan tiang dan kelengkapan kereta perang bertaburan dalam kekacauan.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how fear can dissolve discipline and duty in war: soldiers abandon armour and order, revealing the ethical tension between kṣatriya resolve and human panic. It implicitly contrasts steadfastness (dharma in battle) with the chaos that arises when courage collapses.
Sanjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that troops in Yudhiṣṭhira’s force are in disarray—hair loose, armour discarded, fleeing in all directions. The army’s confusion is compared to a gokula (cowherd settlement) suddenly disturbed, with chariot equipment scattered about.