Shloka 54
भीष्मजीका शिखण्डीसे युद्ध न करनेकी इच्छा प्रकट करना “महाबाहो! युद्धमें महाबली भीष्म तुम्हें पीड़ा नहीं दे सकते, इसलिये आज यत्नपूर्वक इनके ऊपर धावा करो ।। अहत्वा समरे भीष्म यदि यास्यसि मारिष । अवहास्यो5स्य लोकस्य भविष्यसि मया सह,“आर्य! यदि समरभूमिमें भीष्मको मारे बिना लौट जाओगे तो मेरे सहित तुम इस लोकमें उपहासके पात्र बन जाओगे
sañjaya uvāca | mahābāho! yuddhe mahābalī bhīṣmaḥ tvāṃ pīḍāṃ na dāsyati, tasmād adya yatnapūrvakam etān prati dhāva | ahatvā samare bhīṣmam yadi yāsyasi māriṣa, avahāsyo ’sya lokasya bhaviṣyasi mayā saha |
Sañjaya said: “O mighty-armed one! In battle the greatly powerful Bhīṣma will not be able to harm you; therefore, today attack him with deliberate effort. If, dear one, you withdraw from the battlefield without slaying Bhīṣma, then you—together with me—will become an object of ridicule in this world.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the warrior-code emphasis on resolve and honor in battle: retreating without accomplishing the crucial objective (bringing down Bhishma) is framed as a loss of reputation. It also shows how ethical constraints (Bhishma’s refusal to fight Shikhandi) become strategic leverage.
Sanjaya reports an exhortation urging a decisive assault on Bhishma, noting that Bhishma will not harm Shikhandi in combat. The speaker presses the addressee to advance and not return without Bhishma’s fall, warning that withdrawal would invite public ridicule.