Shloka 168
भीष्मकृतः पाण्डवपक्ष-महारथ-प्रशंसा
Bhishma’s appraisal of Pandava-aligned chariot-warriors
इति श्रीमहाभारते उद्योगपर्वणि रथातिरथसंख्यानपर्वणि भीष्मकर्णसंवादे अष्टषष्ट्यधिकशततमो<ध्याय:
iti śrīmahābhārate udyogaparvaṇi rathātirathasaṅkhyānaparvaṇi bhīṣmakarṇasaṃvāde aṣṭaṣaṣṭyadhikaśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ
وهكذا، في «المهابهارتا» الجليلة، ضمن «أوديُوغا بارفا»—في فصل إحصاء فرسان المركبات (رَثا) والعظام (أتيراثا)—في حوار بهيشما وكَرْنَةَ—تنتهي هنا المئةُ والثامنةُ والستون من الفصول.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Though this line is a colophon rather than a doctrinal verse, it highlights a key Mahābhārata concern: before war, leaders must realistically assess strength and responsibility. Enumerating rathas/atirathas is not mere boasting—it underscores accountability, the weight of command decisions, and the ethical gravity of unleashing violence.
The text marks the close of a chapter in the Udyoga Parva within the Bhīṣma–Karṇa conversation, situated in the section that counts and classifies elite chariot-warriors. It functions as an editorial/narrative boundary indicating that the preceding discussion belongs to this strategic catalogue in the run-up to the great war.