Bhima (Sanskrit: भीम, IAST: Bhīma), also known as Bhimasena, is one of the most prominent characters in the Hindu epic Mahabharata. He is the second of the five Pandava brothers, born to Kunti, wife of King Pandu, and fathered by Vayu, the wind god. According to the tradition, this divine parentage endowed him with superhuman strength from birth.
Bhima's life in the epic is marked by a long-running rivalry with the Kauravas, particularly Duryodhana. The narrative recounts an early attempt to poison him, as well as his encounters with formidable adversaries such as Bakasura, Hidimba and Jarasandha. He married Hidimbi, a rakshasi, who bore him a son, Ghatotkacha, a warrior who later took part in the Kurukshetra War. Bhima is depicted with an earthy and forceful nature, an immense appetite, and remarkable physical power, often described in the text as comparable to that of thousands of elephants.
Bhima is portrayed as deeply loyal to his family, especially to Draupadi, the common wife of the Pandavas. After Draupadi's humiliation in the Kaurava court, he vowed to drink Dushasana's blood and to break Duryodhana's thigh—vows the epic describes him fulfilling during the Kurukshetra War, in which he is said to have slain all hundred Kaurava brothers. During the Pandavas' period in disguise at the court of King Virata, Bhima killed Kichaka, who had molested Draupadi.
A master of mace combat, Bhima is regarded in the tradition as among the strongest warriors of his era. The epic also presents him as guided by a sense of justice and duty alongside his martial prowess. After the war, he is depicted as assisting his elder brother Yudhishthira in the governance of the kingdom.
Adapted from the English Wikipedia article on Bhima.