The Slaying of Kirmira

Dhritarashtra was anxious to hear details of how Bhima happened to kill the demon Kirmira. He heard the news from the sage Maitreya. But, the Maharshi left in a rage and refused to go into the details of the incident.
Vidura had just returned from visiting the Pandavas. So, the king asked him about it. Vidura told the king what he learnt while in the forest.
The Pandavas, defeated in the game of dice, reached the Kamyaka forest in three days. It was already late in the night. It was the time when demons moved about. The Pandavas found their way blocked by a horrible demon. They realized too late that that particular forest was normally avoided by meditating sages and even hunters for fear of demons.
The demon which stood in their way was so huge that it reached, as though, the sky. His red coloured eyes protruded and looked like two fire balls. He made such a horrifying sound that even birds flew away and animals ran hither and thither in fright. It appeared, as though, that even the creepers twined around nearby trees frightened by the air created by his movements. Draupadi was so frightened that she swooned into the hands of her husbands.
The demon had cast magic around the Pandavas and they could not see clearly. Dhaumya, their priest, managed to remove the magic through the power of his Mantra. It was only then that the Pandavas could see the huge figure in front. Yudhishthira did not lose courage and asked him. “Who are you and what is your mission?”
The demon replied. “I am the younger brother of the demon Baka. I live in this forest. I make a meal of humans who come my way. I am fortunate that I will have you for tonight. Tell me, who you are”.
Yudhishthira replied without fear. “I am Yudhishthira, the Pandava. These are my four brothers. The lady with us is our wife. We have come here to live as we have lost our kingdom”.
Kirmira was delighted to hear this reply. He said. “I am lucky that you have been brought to me. I have been waiting to avenge the death of my elder brother, Baka, at the hands of this Bhima. Hidimba whom Bhima killed was a good friend of mine. Today I shall offer Bhima’s blood in sacrifice to my brother.”
Bhima roared from behind that that was not going to happen. He uprooted a tree and used it as a baton to strike the demon on the head. Kirmira did the same and faced Bhima with a tree held in hand. The two fought for a while striking each other on the head with their improvised weapons. Then each picked a rock and threw it against the enemy. Next they wrestled with one another. The two matched each other in strength. Bhima noticed after a while that his enemy was showing signs of weakness. He held the demon with his strong arms around his waist and shook him with force. Then Bhima gave a huge blow to the demon in his stomach with his iron fist. Bhima knew that he had already weakened his enemy considerably. So, he wasted no time and throttled the demon to suffocation and threw him down dead.
Dhritarashtra heard the story from vidura and let out a sigh in desperation thinking about the strength of the Pandava.
Vyasa ends the chapter on “slaying of Kirmira (Kirmira Vadha Parvam)” here.