Shloka 10
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय 18: सेनानिनादः, ध्वज-दीप्तिः, भीष्मरक्षण-व्यवस्था च
Battle Muster: Soundscape, Banners, and the Protection of Bhīṣma
ऋषभाक्षा महेष्वासाश्वमूमुखगता बभु: | पृष्ठगोपास्तु भीष्मस्य पुत्रास्तव नराधिप । दुःशासनो दुर्विषहो दुर्मुखो दुःसहस्तथा
sañjaya uvāca |
ṛṣabhākṣā maheṣvāsāśvamūmukhagatā babhuḥ |
pṛṣṭhagopās tu bhīṣmasya putrās tava narādhipa |
duḥśāsano durviṣaho durmukho duḥsahas tathā |
vivimśatiś citrasenaś ca mahāratho vikarṇaḥ |
satyavrataḥ purumitraḥ jayaḥ bhūriśravāḥ śalaḥ |
eteṣām anuyāyinaś ca rathā viṃśatisāhasrāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Those great bowmen, with bull-like large eyes, stood facing the enemy’s front and appeared splendid. O king, guarding Bhīṣma’s rear were your sons—Duḥśāsana, Durviṣaha, Durmukha, Duḥsaha—along with Vivimśati, Citrasena, the great chariot-warrior Vikarṇa, Satyavrata, Purumitra, Jaya, Bhūriśravā, Śala, and their followers: twenty thousand chariot-fighters.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds disciplined organization and loyalty within a martial hierarchy: protecting the commander’s rear is treated as a concrete duty. Ethically, it also hints at the Mahābhārata’s tension—competence and devotion to one’s side can be impeccable even when the larger cause is morally fraught.
Sañjaya describes the Kaurava deployment: impressive archers stand at the battlefront, while Bhīṣma’s rear is guarded by Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons and allied warriors, supported by a force of twenty thousand chariot-fighters.