Shloka 6
आचार्य-क्षमा, देśa–kāla-नīti, तथा भेद-दोषः
Teacher-Reconciliation, Timing-Policy, and the Fault of Factionalism
रथं तमागतं दृष्टवा दक्षिणं प्राकरोत् तदा । रथमास्थाय बी भत्सु: कौन्तेय: श्वेतवाहन:
vaiśampāyana uvāca | rathaṃ tam āgataṃ dṛṣṭvā dakṣiṇaṃ prākaroṭ tadā | ratham āsthāya bībhatsuḥ kaunteyaḥ śvetavāhanaḥ |
Vaiśampāyana sprach: Als er den Wagen herankommen sah, umschritt er ihn ehrfürchtig zur Rechten. Dann bestieg Bībhatsu—Arjuna, Kuntīs Sohn, dessen Rosse weiß waren—den Wagen und rüstete sich für die bevorstehende Aufgabe, indem er das Gefährt und die Maßstäbe rechten Handelns ehrte, selbst da er einem nahen Konflikt entgegenging.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even on the threshold of battle, one should act with discipline and auspicious propriety: Arjuna’s rightward circumambulation reflects reverence, self-control, and adherence to dharma before undertaking a grave duty.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Arjuna sees the chariot arrive, performs a rightward circumambulation (a respectful, auspicious act), then mounts it—identified by his epithets Bībhatsu and Kaunteya and by his white steeds—signaling readiness to proceed toward the coming confrontation.