Shloka 36
Chapter 12: Arjuna’s suppression of the Saṃśaptakas and duel with Aśvatthāmā
Drauṇi
अथ कार्मुकमादाय भीमो जलदनि:स्वनम् | रिपोरभ्यर्दयन्नागमुन्नदन् पाण्डव: शरै:
atha kārmukam ādāya bhīmo jalada-niḥsvanam | ripor abhyardayann āgam unnadan pāṇḍavaḥ śaraiḥ ||
Wika ni Sañjaya: Pagkaraan, kinuha ni Bhīma ang kanyang busog na ang tunog ay malalim na gaya ng kulog sa ulap. Umuungal, sinalakay ng anak ni Pāṇḍu ang elepante ng kaaway, pinahirapan ito sa ulang-palaso—larawan ng walang patid na lakas sa digmaan na nakatuon sa pagwasak sa makinang pandigma ng kalaban.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds kṣatriya-dharma in its battlefield form: disciplined, forceful action aimed at disabling the opponent’s combat power. The ethical frame is not personal cruelty but the grim necessity of war, where strategic targets (like war-elephants) are neutralized to protect one’s side.
Sañjaya describes Bhīma seizing his thunderous-sounding bow, roaring, and striking the enemy’s elephant with arrows, causing it intense distress—an escalation in the combat scene emphasizing Bhīma’s ferocity and momentum.