Mahabharata 4.13.36 — Virata Parva, Adhyaya 13, Shloka 36
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 13 — Kīcaka’s Proposition and Draupadī’s Dharmic Refusal
भ्रामयित्वा शतगुणं गतसत्त्वमचेतनम् । प्रत्यपिंघन्महाबाहुर्मलल्लं भुवि वृकोदर:
bhrāmayitvā śataguṇaṃ gatasattvam acetanam | pratyapiṅghan mahābāhur mallaṃ bhuvi vṛkodaraḥ ||
भ्रामयित्वा शतगुणं गतसत्त्वमचेतनम् । प्रत्यपिंघन्महाबाहुर्मल्लं भुवि वृकोदरः ॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the consequence of overwhelming force in a contest: once an opponent is rendered powerless and unconscious, the victor’s action becomes final and decisive. In the Mahābhārata’s kṣatriya-ethos setting, it reflects the grim clarity of strength and duty in violent encounters, while also inviting reflection on restraint when an adversary is already incapacitated.
Bhīma (Vṛkodara) spins the wrestler repeatedly—‘a hundred times’—until the man loses strength and consciousness. Bhīma then throws/strikes him down to the ground and crushes him, bringing the bout to a decisive end.
Ask anything about this verse
Curious about the meaning, context, or a word? Ask, and continue the conversation in the Vedapath app.
A free Google sign-in keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Mahabharata in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with audio, word-by-word meanings, and more.