Shloka 25

Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 21 — Kīcaka’s clandestine approach and Bhīma’s covert intervention (नर्तनागारे कीचकवध-प्रसङ्गः)

Devanagari script

शतं शतसहस्राणि गन्धर्वाणामहं रणे । समागतं हनिष्यामि त्वं भीरु कुरु मे क्षणम्‌,'भीरु! यदि युद्धमें मेरे सामने एक करोड़ गन्धर्व भी आ जाया, तो मैं उन्हें मार डालूगा; परंतु तुम मुझे स्वीकार कर लो"

Transliteration

śataṁ śata-sahasrāṇi gandharvāṇām ahaṁ raṇe | samāgataṁ haniṣyāmi tvaṁ bhīru kuru me kṣaṇam ||

Translation

యుద్ధంలో గంధర్వులు లక్షలకొద్దీ సమవేతులై నా ఎదుట నిలిచినా నేను వారిని సంహరిస్తాను; కాని ఓ భీరువా, నాకు క్షణమాత్రం ఇవ్వు—నన్ను స్వీకరించు।

Word by Word

शतम्a hundred

शतसहस्राणिhundreds of thousands

गन्धर्वाणाम्of the Gandharvas

अहम्I

रणेin battle

समागतम्having come together / assembled

हनिष्यामिI will slay

त्वम्you

भीरुO timid one

कुरुdo / make

मेfor me / to me

क्षणम्a moment

Speaker

भीमसेन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīmasena

Gandharvas

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 foregrounds the kṣatriya ideal of fearlessness and readiness to face overwhelming odds, while also showing how such power can be invoked rhetorically to persuade another person—raising ethical questions about pressure, consent, and the proper use of strength.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīma speaks in a heightened, boastful register: he claims he could defeat even vast numbers of Gandharvas in battle, and then turns to an immediate personal request—addressing someone as ‘bhīru’ and urging them to grant him a moment and accept him.