Shloka 24
भीष्मकृतः पाण्डवपक्ष-महारथ-प्रशंसा
Bhishma’s appraisal of Pandava-aligned chariot-warriors
क्व च युद्ध विमर्दो वा मन्त्रे सुव्याहृतानि च । क्व च भीष्मो गतवया मन्दात्मा कालचोदित:
kva ca yuddha-vimardo vā mantre suvyāhṛtāni ca | kva ca bhīṣmo gatavayā mandātmā kāla-coditaḥ ||
„Wo ist das Geschäft des Krieges—seine zermalmenden Zusammenstöße—und wo die Aufgabe, im geheimen Rat wohl zu sprechen? Und wo bin ich, Bhīṣma—dessen Lebensspanne schon verzehrt ist, mit stumpf gewordenem Entschluss, vom Zeitlauf vorangetrieben?“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma highlights the mismatch between the ideal demands of war and wise counsel—clarity, strength, and timely speech—and his own condition as an aged man compelled by Kāla. The verse underscores humility and the ethical awareness that even great elders can be constrained by circumstance and time.
In the tense lead-up to the Kurukṣetra war (Udyoga Parva), Bhīṣma speaks reflectively, contrasting the fierce arena of battle and the need for sound strategic counsel with his own aged, time-driven state, implying reluctance and a sense of tragic compulsion.