Shloka 9
भीष्मस्य सेनापत्यप्रतिज्ञा तथा रथसंख्यावर्णनम् | Bhishma Accepts Command and Enumerates Kaurava Strength
कैतव्य गत्वा भरतान् समेत्य सुयोधन धार्तराष्ट्रं वदस्व । तथेत्युवाचार्जुन: सव्यसाची निशाव्यपाये भविता विमर्द:
kaitavya gatvā bharatān sametya suyodhana dhārtarāṣṭraṃ vadasva | tathety uvācārjunaḥ savyasācī niśāvyapāye bhavitā vimardaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “O Ulūka, go to the Bharatas, meet them, and deliver this message to Suyodhana, the son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra: ‘Savyasācī Arjuna has replied, “So be it,” accepting your challenge. When this night has passed, the clash will begin.’” The verse frames the coming battle as a formally acknowledged confrontation, where words of challenge and acceptance harden resolve and make the outbreak of war imminent.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how deliberate speech—challenge, acceptance, and formal messaging—can seal ethical and practical commitments. Once a kṣatriya challenge is accepted publicly, retreat becomes morally and socially difficult, making the outbreak of war feel inevitable.
Ulūka is instructed to go to the Bharata/Kuru side and tell Duryodhana that Arjuna has accepted the challenge with “tathā” (“so be it”), and that once the night ends, the battle will commence.