Shloka 5
भीष्मसेनापत्याभिषेकः
Bhīṣma’s Appointment as Commander-in-Chief
सर्वमेतदतिक्रम्य विचार्य च पुन: पुनः । क्षमं यन्नो महाबाहो तद् ब्रवीह्विचारयन्,“महाबाहो! इन सब विचारोंको लाँधकर स्वयं ही इस विषयपर बारंबार विचार करके हमारे लिये जो उचित हो, उसे नि:संकोच कहिये'
sarvam etad atikramya vicārya ca punaḥ punaḥ | kṣamaṁ yan no mahābāho tad bravīh vicārayan ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Setting aside all these considerations, and reflecting again and again on the matter yourself, O mighty-armed one, tell us—after due deliberation—what you judge to be proper for us.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ethically weighty choices should be made through repeated, independent reflection, and then expressed plainly as what is truly fitting (kṣama) for those concerned—rather than being driven by a tangle of competing arguments or pressures.
In the Udyoga Parva’s counsel-driven setting, the speaker frames a request to a heroic figure addressed as “mahābāho”: after setting aside the many points already raised, he should think the matter over again and again and state what course is appropriate for ‘us’.