Shloka 33
भीष्मस्य मध्याह्नयुद्धवर्णनम् / Mid-day Battle Description: Bhīṣma Engaged by the Pāñcālas
अद्भुतं च महाराज तत्र चक्रे वृकोदर: । यत् पुत्रांस्तेडवधीत् संख्ये द्रोणं चैव न््यवारयत्,महाराज! भीमसेनने उस युद्धस्थलमें आपके पुत्रोंका वध तो किया ही, द्रोणाचार्यको भी आगे बढ़नेसे रोक रखा था। यह उन्होंने अद्भुत पराक्रम किया
adbhutaṃ ca mahārāja tatra cakre vṛkodaraḥ | yat putrāṃs te ’vadhīt saṅkhye droṇaṃ caiva nyavārayat ||
सञ्जय उवाच—अद्भुतं च महाराज तत्र चक्रे वृकोदरः। यत् पुत्रांस्तेऽवधीत् संख्ये द्रोणं चैव न्यवारयत्॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights two battlefield virtues often praised in epic ethics: decisive valor (slaying enemies in open combat) and strategic restraint (checking a formidable opponent’s advance). It frames Bhīma’s action as extraordinary not merely for killing, but for controlling the flow of battle by containing Droṇa.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Bhīma (Vṛkodara) performed an astonishing deed on the battlefield: he killed some of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons and simultaneously prevented Droṇa from pushing forward, thereby disrupting the Kaurava offensive.