Shloka 5
Bhīṣma’s Stuti of Keśava and Counsel on Nara–Nārāyaṇa (भीष्म-स्तवः; नरनारायण-प्रसङ्गः)
सा वाहिनी शान्तनवेन गुप्ता महारथैर्वरिणवाजिभिश्ष । बभौ सविद्युत्स्तनयित्नुकल्पा जलागमे द्यौरिव जातमेघा,शान्तनुनन्दन भीष्मसे रक्षित वह विशाल वाहिनी बड़े-बड़े रथों, हाथियों और घोड़ोंसे ऐसी शोभा पा रही थी, मानो वर्षाकालमें मेघोंकी घटासे आच्छादित आकाश बिजलीसहित बादलोंसे सुशोभित हो पीडयानं तु तत् सैन्यं पौत्रं तव विशाम्पते । दृष्टवा त्वदीया राजेन्द्र समन्तात् पर्यवारयन् प्रजानाथ! राजेन्द्र! आपके पौत्र अभिमन्युको कौरवसेनाको पीड़ा देते देख आपके ही सैनिकोंने सब ओरसे घेर लिया
sā vāhinī śāntanavena guptā mahārathair variṇa-vājibhiṣ ca | babhau sa-vidyut-stanayitnu-kalpā jalāgame dyaūr iva jāta-meghā ||
pīḍayanaṃ tu tat sainyaṃ pautraṃ tava viśām-pate | dṛṣṭvā tvadīyā rājendra samantāt paryavārayan ||
Sañjaya said: That vast host, protected by Śāntanava (Bhīṣma) and adorned with great chariot-warriors, elephants, and horses, shone like the sky in the rainy season—covered with newly formed clouds, flashing with lightning and rumbling with thunder. But when your grandson was seen harassing that army, O lord of the people, your own troops, O king, surrounded him on every side.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how martial splendor and disciplined protection (under Bhīṣma) must be matched by coordinated action: when a single powerful warrior threatens the host, the army responds collectively by encircling him—an ethical lesson in leadership, duty, and shared responsibility in crisis.
Sañjaya describes the Kaurava host as magnificent and well-guarded under Bhīṣma, likening it to a stormy monsoon sky. Then he reports that, seeing the king’s grandson (Abhimanyu) pressing the army hard, the king’s troops surround him from all sides.