Shloka 40
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 130: Kuntī’s Instruction on Rājadharma and Daṇḍanīti
भीष्मो द्रोण: कृप: क्षत्ता धृतराष्ट्रोड्थ बाह्विक: । अश्वत्थामा विकर्णश्न युयुत्सुश्न महारथ:
bhīṣmo droṇaḥ kṛpaḥ kṣattā dhṛtarāṣṭro ’tha bāhlīkaḥ | aśvatthāmā vikarṇaś ca yuyutsuś ca mahārathaḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: “The names of those heroes are as follows—Bhīṣma, Droṇa, Kṛpa, Vidura (the royal chamberlain), Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Bāhlīka, Aśvatthāmā, Vikarṇa, and the great chariot-warrior Yuyutsu.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
By listing revered elders, teachers, and royal kin among the ‘heroes,’ the verse highlights a central Mahābhārata tension: social duty and political allegiance can compel even morally reflective figures to stand within a destructive conflict, making discernment of dharma complex rather than simplistic.
Vaiśaṃpāyana provides a roster of notable Kuru-aligned figures—Bhīṣma through Yuyutsu—identifying the principal persons present/recognized as leading warriors and dignitaries in the Udyoga Parva context as the war-party alignments and preparations are being articulated.