Shloka 31
Bhagadattā’s Deployment Against Ghaṭotkaca; Elephant-Corps Escalation
ततो दुर्योधनो राजा भ्रातृव्यसनकर्शित: । अबवीत् तावकान् योधान् भीमो<यं युधि वध्यताम्,भाइयोंके मरनेसे राजा दुर्योधनको बड़ा कष्ट हुआ। अतः उसने आपके समस्त सैनिकोंको आज्ञा दी कि इस भीमसेनको युद्धमें मार डालो
tato duryodhano rājā bhrātṛvyasana-karśitaḥ | abravīt tāvakān yodhān bhīmo 'yaṃ yudhi vadhyatām ||
Então o rei Duryodhana, atormentado pela calamidade que se abatera sobre seus irmãos, dirigiu-se aos teus guerreiros: “Este Bhīma—que seja morto em batalha.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse shows how sorrow over kin-loss can quickly become anger and retaliation, influencing a leader’s decisions. Ethically, it warns that grief-driven commands may intensify adharma-like violence by reducing a complex conflict to a single-minded call for killing.
Sañjaya reports that Duryodhana, distressed by the deaths or ruin of his brothers, addresses the Kaurava fighters and orders them to kill Bhīma on the battlefield.