Shloka 19
वैशम्पायन उवाच एवं ब्रुवाणमजिनैर्विवासितं दुःशासनस्तं परिनृत्यति सम । मध्ये कुरूणां धर्मनिबद्धमार्ग गौर्गौरिति स्माह्दयन् मुक्तलज्ज:
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: evaṃ bruvāṇam ajinair vivāsitaṃ duḥśāsanas taṃ parinṛtyati sma | madhye kurūṇāṃ dharma-nibaddha-mārgaṃ gaur gaur iti smāhvayan mukta-lajjaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai Janamejaya, melihat Bhīmasena—berselubung kulit rusa dan berkata demikian—Duḥśāsana yang tidak tahu malu pun mula menari-nari mengejek di tengah kaum Kuru, memperolok-oloknya sambil melaung, ‘Wahai lembu jantan! Wahai lembu jantan!’ Namun langkah Bhīma ditahan oleh Dharma-rāja Yudhiṣṭhira pada jalan dharma; jika tidak, Bhīma tidak akan membiarkan Duḥśāsana hidup.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharma as restraint under provocation: even when insulted publicly, Bhīma’s impulse toward immediate violent retaliation is checked by Yudhiṣṭhira’s commitment to righteous conduct and strategic patience.
In the Kuru court, Duḥśāsana shamelessly mocks Bhīma—who is described as wearing deerskins—by dancing and calling him ‘ox.’ Bhīma is prevented from acting on his anger because Yudhiṣṭhira holds him back on the grounds of dharma.