Shloka 14
Brahmaśirastra-pratisaṃhāra — Retraction and redirection of the supreme weapon
Sauptika Parva, Adhyāya 15
“'मुने! मैंने भीमसेनके भयसे भारी संकटमें पड़कर अपने प्राणोंको बचानेके लिये ही यह अस्त्र छोड़ा था ।।
muné! mayāpi bhīmasenasya bhayāt bhāri saṅkaṭe patitvā svaprāṇān rakṣituṃ kevalaṃ ayam astraḥ muktaḥ. adharmas tu kṛto 'nena dhārtarāṣṭraṃ jighāṃsatā; mithyācāreṇa bhagavan bhīmasenena saṃyuge.
“Ó sábio! Por medo de Bhīmasena, caí numa aflição terrível e lancei esta arma apenas para salvar a minha vida. Contudo, esse Bhīmasena, movido pelo desejo de matar o Dhārtarāṣṭra (Duryodhana), cometeu no campo de batalha um grande ato de adharma, valendo-se do engano, ó venerável.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage contrasts self-defense with intentional wrongdoing: saving one’s life in extreme danger is presented as a motive, but deliberately pursuing an enemy’s death through deceitful means is condemned as adharma, highlighting the epic’s concern for ethical limits even in war.
A speaker explains that he discharged a weapon only to protect his life when threatened by Bhīmasena. He then accuses Bhīmasena of committing adharma in battle by adopting deceitful conduct with the aim of killing Duryodhana (the Dhārtarāṣṭra).