Shloka 28
Virāṭanagara-nivāsa-nirṇaya
Decision to Reside in Virāṭa’s City
इत्येतद् वो मया55ख्यातं विहरिष्याम्यहं यथा । इस प्रकार मैंने तुमलोगोंको बता दिया कि विराटनगरमें मैं किस प्रकार रहूँगा || २७३ || (वैशग्पायन उवाच एवं निर्दिश्य चात्मानं भीमसेनमुवाच ह ।।
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
bhīmasena kathaṁ karma mātsyaraṣṭre kariṣyasi |
hatvā krodhavaśāṁs tatra parvate gandhamādane |
yakṣān krodhābhitāmrākṣān rākṣasāṁś cāpi pauruṣān |
prādāḥ pāñcālakanyāyai padmāni subahūny api ||
bakaṁ rākṣasarājānaṁ bhīṣaṇaṁ puruṣādakam |
jaghnivān asi kaunteya brāhmaṇārtham ariṁdama |
kṣemā cābhayasaṁvītā ekacakrā tvayā kṛtā ||
hiḍimbaṁ ca mahāvīrya kirmīraṁ caiva rākṣasam |
tvayā hatvā mahābāho vanaṁ niṣkaṇṭakaṁ kṛtam ||
āpadaṁ cāpi samprāptā draupadī cāru-hāsinī |
jaṭāsuravadhaṁ kṛtvā tvayā ca parimokṣitā ||
matsyarājāntike tāta vīryapūrṇo 'tyamarṣaṇaḥ |
vṛkodara virāṭe tvaṁ raṁsyase kena hetunā ||
Yudhiṣṭhira disse: “Bhīmasena, que tipo de trabalho poderás desempenhar na terra dos Matsyas? No monte Gandhamādana tu abateste os Yakṣas chamados Krodhavaśa—de olhos rubros de ira—e também poderosos Rākṣasas; e trouxeste muitos lótus para a princesa de Pāñcāla (Draupadī). Mataste o terrível Baka, rei dos Rākṣasas, devorador de homens, para proteger uma família de brāhmaṇas, ó filho de Kuntī, domador de inimigos, e assim tornaste Ekacakrā segura e livre do medo. Também mataste o vigoroso Hiḍimba e o Rākṣasa Kirmīra, ó de braços fortes, tornando a floresta ‘sem espinhos’—segura para os viajantes. E quando Draupadī, de belo sorriso, caiu em perigo, tu a libertaste ao matar Jaṭāsura. Portanto, meu querido—pleno de força e feroz na resistência—dize-me: por que papel ou dever viverás contente na corte de Virāṭa?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even extraordinary power must be governed by dharma and context: Yudhiṣṭhira highlights Bhīma’s past righteous uses of strength—protecting brāhmaṇas, rescuing Draupadī, removing threats—then asks how such force can be ethically and safely ‘reassigned’ into a humble, concealed role during the incognito year, where restraint and strategy are themselves duties.
As the Pāṇḍavas plan their year of concealment in Virāṭa’s Matsya kingdom, Yudhiṣṭhira questions Bhīma about what occupation he can adopt at Virāṭa’s court. He recalls Bhīma’s famous feats—slaying Baka, Hiḍimba, Kirmīra, Jaṭāsura, and fighting Yakṣas at Gandhamādana—underscoring Bhīma’s formidable nature and asking what role will allow him to remain undiscovered and content.