ततो ऽन्यद् धनुर् आदाय वेगवत् सुमहास्वनम् ॥
भीमसेनो रणे क्रुद्धो हार्दिक्यं समवारयत् ॥
अथैनं पञ्चभिर् बाणैर् आजघान स्तनान्तरे ॥
भीमो भीमबलो राजंस् तव दुर्मन्त्रितेन ह ॥
भोजस् तु क्षतसर्वाङ्गो भीमसेनेन मारिष ॥
रक्ताशोक इवोत्फुल्लो व्यभ्राजत रणाजिरे ॥
tato 'nyad dhanur ādāya vegavat sumahāsvanam ||
bhīmaseno raṇe kruddho hārdikyaṃ samavārayat ||
athainaṃ pañcabhir bāṇair ājaghāna stanāntare ||
bhīmo bhīmabalo rājaṃs tava durmantritena ha ||
bhojas tu kṣatasarvāṅgo bhīmasenena māriṣa ||
raktāśoka ivotphullo vyabhrājata raṇājire ||
Then, taking up another bow, mighty and very loud-twanging, Bhimasena in battle, enraged, held back the son of Hridika. Then Bhima, of terrible strength, O king, struck him [in] the chest with five arrows -- [all this] by your ill counsel indeed. And Bhoja, [with] all his limbs wounded by Bhimasena, O venerable one, shone [on] the battlefield like a red ashoka in bloom.
ca46a9b88dc8 · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:02:23 PM UTC
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The wounded Kritavarman, "raktāśoka iva utphullaḥ," shines like a blooming red ashoka: his wounds are the crimson hue of valor. And again Sanjaya inserts a reproach: "tava durmantritena," all this by the king's evil counsel. It is significant that even in the midst of the battle's description the root cause is not forgotten. The verse teaches that the beauty of courage does not erase the guilt of those who caused the strife: a warrior shines with his wounds, yet his blood is on the conscience of those whose "durmantrita" unleashed the war -- the valor of fighters and the guilt of instigators stand side by side on the same field.