Shloka 18
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 50 — Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Appraisal of Bhīmasena (भीमसेनभयवर्णनम्)
कि पुनर्मम दुष्पुत्रै: क्लिष्ट: सम्प्रति पाण्डव: । संजय! पाण्डुकुमार भीमसेन बचपनमें भी कभी मेरे वशमें नहीं रहा; फिर जब मेरे दुष्ट पुत्रोंने उसे बार-बार कष्ट दिया है, तब वह इस समय मेरे वशमें कैसे हो सकता है? ।।
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | ki punar mama duṣputraiḥ kliṣṭaḥ samprati pāṇḍavaḥ | sañjaya! pāṇḍukumāro bhīmasenaḥ bālye 'pi kadācin mama vaśe naivābhavat; punaś ca mama duṣṭaputraiḥ punaḥ punaḥ pīḍitaḥ san sa idānīṃ kathaṃ mama vaśo bhavet || niṣṭhuro roṣaṇo 'tyarthaṃ bhajyeta api na saṃnamet | tiryakprekṣī saṃhatabhrūḥ kathaṃ śāmyed vṛkodaraḥ ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra disse: “Como poderia o Pāṇḍava estar agora sob o meu controle, se foi atormentado por meus filhos perversos? Sañjaya, Bhīmasena, filho de Pāṇḍu, nunca esteve de fato sob o meu jugo nem mesmo na infância; e, depois de ser oprimido repetidas vezes por meus filhos, como se submeteria a mim agora? Ele é áspero e de ira extrema — pode quebrar, mas não se dobra. Com o olhar oblíquo e penetrante e as sobrancelhas cerradas pela cólera, como poderia Vṛkodara ser apaziguado?”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
Injustice and repeated harm destroy moral authority: a ruler who allows wrongdoing by his own side cannot expect the injured party to submit peacefully. The verse also highlights how unchecked anger and humiliation harden resolve, making reconciliation difficult unless wrongdoing is acknowledged and corrected.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra speaks to Sañjaya, reflecting anxiously on Bhīma’s temperament. He admits that Bhīma was never truly controllable even earlier, and that after the Kauravas’ repeated harassment, Bhīma is unlikely to be pacified or brought under Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s influence—foreshadowing the inevitability of conflict.