Shloka 12
कृष्णोपदेशः, अर्जुनस्य क्षमा-याचनम्, कर्णवध-अनुज्ञा
Krishna’s Counsel, Arjuna’s Apology, and Authorization for Karṇa’s Slaying
वे चारों ओरसे नाना प्रकारके चिह्लोंसे युक्त बाण-समूहोंकी वर्षा करने लगे। नरेश्वर! उनसे पीड़ित होकर महाबली भीमसेनने पचास रथोंके साथ आये हुए आपके पुत्रोंके उन पचासों रथियोंको शीघ्र ही नष्ट कर दिया ।। विवित्सोस्तु ततः क्रुद्धो भल्लेनापाहरच्छिर: । भीमसेनो महाराज तत् पपात हतं भुवि
sañjaya uvāca |
vivitsos tu tataḥ kruddho bhallena apāharac chiraḥ |
bhīmaseno mahārāja tat papāta hataṃ bhuvi ||
Sañjaya disse: Então começaram a fazer chover, de todos os lados, feixes de flechas com sinais e formas variadas. Ó soberano, embora afligido por elas, o poderosíssimo Bhīmasena destruiu depressa aqueles cinquenta guerreiros de carro—cinquenta carros—que vieram com teus filhos. Em seguida Vivitsu (Yudhiṣṭhira), tomado de ira, com uma flecha bhalla afiada decepou a cabeça. Ó rei, aquela cabeça caiu ao chão, e Bhīmasena tombou, morto.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger in war accelerates decisive, often brutal action, reminding readers that even within kṣatriya-duty the moral weight of violence and retaliation accumulates, shaping the ethical aftermath for victors and vanquished alike.
Sañjaya reports that Vivitsu (Yudhiṣṭhira), enraged, uses a bhalla-arrow to sever a head; it falls to the ground, and Bhīmasena is described as slain—depicting a rapid, lethal turn in the battle.