संजय उवाच
भीमसेनस् तु राधेयम् उत्सृज्य रथिनां वरम् ॥
इयेष गन्तुं यत्रास्तां वीरौ कृष्णधनंजयौ ॥
तं प्रयान्तम् अभिद्रुत्य राधेयः कङ्कपत्रिभिः ॥
अभ्यवर्षन् महाराज मेघो वृष्ट्येव पर्वतम् ॥
फुल्लता पङ्कजेनेव वक्त्रेणाभ्युत्स्मयन् बली ॥
आजुहाव रणे यान्तं भीमम् आधिरथिस् तदा ॥
saṃjaya uvāca
bhīmasenas tu rādheyam utsṛjya rathināṃ varam ||
iyeṣa gantuṃ yatrāstāṃ vīrau kṛṣṇadhanaṃjayau ||
taṃ prayāntam abhidrutya rādheyaḥ kaṅkapatribhiḥ ||
abhyavarṣan mahārāja megho vṛṣṭyeva parvatam ||
phullatā paṅkajeneva vaktreṇābhyutsmayan balī ||
ājuhāva raṇe yāntaṃ bhīmam ādhirathis tadā ||
But Bhimasena, leaving behind Radheya, the foremost of charioteers, wished to go where the two heroes, Krishna and Dhananjaya, were. Overtaking him as he went, Radheya showered him, O great king, with arrows feathered with heron plumes, as a cloud showers a mountain with rain. With a face smiling like a blooming lotus, the mighty one, the son of Adhiratha, then challenged Bhima, who was departing, to battle.
5e12a98b6e27 · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:17:33 PM UTC
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Karna calls out to the departing Bhima "phullatā paṅkajeneva vaktreṇa," with a face blooming like a lotus: a dignity that does not lose its clarity even in battle. It is telling that the challenge is issued with a smile, not with fury. The verse teaches that a noble warrior keeps a clear spirit even in war: where others fight with faces twisted by anger, the valorous one meets his foe with a radiant countenance, for he masters himself and does not surrender to blind rage.