Shloka 27

शल्यपरिघातः (Śalya Under Encirclement) — Mahābhārata, Śalya-parva, Adhyāya 12

Devanagari script

भीमसेनो गदापाणि: समाह्नयत मद्रपम्‌ । इधर गदाधारी भीमसेन पलक मारते-मारते पुनः होशमें आकर उठ खड़े हुए और विह्वलताके कारण मतवाले पुरुषके समान मद्रराजको युद्धके लिये ललकारने लगे ।। ततस्तु तावका: शूरा नानाशस्त्रसमायुता:

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | bhīmaseno gadāpāṇiḥ samāhvayat madrāpam | tatastu tāvakāḥ śūrā nānāśastrasamāyutāḥ |

Translation

கதையைக் கையில் கொண்ட பீமசேனன் மத்ரராஜனைப் போருக்கு அழைத்தான். அப்போது உன் தரப்பின் வீரர்கள் பலவகை ஆயுதங்களுடன் (எதிர்வினை செய்ய முனைந்தனர்)॥

Word by Word

भीमसेनःBhimasena

गदापाणिःmace-in-hand (one whose hand holds a mace)

समाह्वयत्challenged, called out

मद्रपम्the Madra king (ruler of Madra)

ततःthen, thereafter

तुbut, indeed

तावकाःyour (i.e., Duryodhana’s) / belonging to you; the Kauravas’

शूराःheroes, brave warriors

नानाvarious, diverse

शस्त्रweapons

समायुताःequipped/armed, furnished (with)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Bhīmasena (Bhīma)

Gadā (mace)

Madrarāja / Madrāpa (Śalya)

Tāvakāḥ (Kaurava warriors)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights kṣatriya-dharma in its starkest form: a warrior publicly challenges an opposing king, and the opposing host responds. Ethically, it shows how individual resolve and anger can escalate into wider violence, reminding the listener that war is sustained not only by strategy but by personal vows, pride, and the momentum of retaliation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that Bhīma, holding his mace, calls out the king of Madra (Śalya) for battle. Immediately afterward, the Kaurava warriors—armed with many kinds of weapons—stir to meet the challenge, setting the stage for intensified fighting around this confrontation.