Shloka 11
Jaitrya-nimitta: Signs of Prospective Victory and the Priority of Conciliation (जयलक्षण-निमित्त तथा सान्त्व-प्रधान नीति)
माड़ल्यशब्दान् शकुना वदन्ति हंसा: क्रौजचा: शतपत्राश्न चाषा: | हृष्टा योधा: सत्त्ववन्तो भवन्ति जयस्यैतद् भाविनो रूपमाहु:
māḍalyaśabdān śakunā vadanti haṃsāḥ krauñcāḥ śatapatrāś ca cāṣāḥ | hṛṣṭā yodhāḥ sattvavanto bhavanti jayasya etad bhāvino rūpam āhuḥ ||
Bhishma said: “When birds utter auspicious, heartening calls—such as geese, cranes, the śatapatra-bird, and the cāṣa—and when the warriors appear joyful, spirited, and full of courage, this is declared to be a sign that victory is about to come.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Victory is not read only from weapons and numbers; traditional dharma-texts also attend to morale and auspicious indicators. Here, the warriors’ inner steadiness (sattva) and confident joy, together with favorable natural signs, are presented as marks of impending success.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs on royal and practical wisdom. In this verse he lists battlefield omens: when certain birds cry in a propitious manner and the troops appear enthusiastic and courageous, it is taken as a favorable sign that victory is near.