Shloka 14
शूरलक्षणवर्णनम् | Marks and Typologies of Martial Temperament
जिद्याक्षा: प्रललाटाश्व निर्मासहनवो5डपि च । वज़बाह्वंगुलीचक्रा: कृशा धमनिसंतता:
jidyākṣāḥ pralalāṭāśva-nirmāsa-hanavo 'lpāpi ca | vajra-bāhv-aṅgulī-cakrāḥ kṛśā dhamani-saṃtatāḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: Those whose eyes are slanting, whose foreheads are high, whose jaws are lean and almost fleshless; whose arms bear the mark of the vajra and whose fingers bear the mark of the cakra; and whose bodies are so thin that the web of veins stands out—such men, the moment battle is joined, rush with great speed into the enemy’s ranks and become as hard to overcome as maddened elephants.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents an epic ideal where a warrior’s bodily signs and bearing are read as indicators of irresistible courage and battlefield efficacy, reinforcing the Kṣatriya ethic of decisive, forceful engagement in war.
Bhīṣma is describing a type of formidable fighter: lean, sinewy men marked with auspicious/terrifying signs (vajra and cakra) who, as soon as combat begins, surge into enemy formations and prove extremely difficult to defeat.