Shloka 18
Bhīṣma’s Appraisal of Pāṇḍava-Alliance Warriors (Śikhaṇḍin, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, and Allied Kings)
राक्षसेष्वथ यक्षेषु नरेषु कुत एव तु । भूतो5थवा भविष्यो वा रथ: वक्चिन्मया श्रुत:
rākṣaseṣv atha yakṣeṣu nareṣu kuta eva tu | bhūto 'thavā bhaviṣyo vā rathaḥ kaścin mayā śrutaḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “Among the Rākṣasas and the Yakṣas—what then to say of men—there is none comparable. Whether in the past or in the future, I have never heard of any charioteer-warrior like him.” In this praise, Bhīṣma underscores Arjuna’s unmatched martial excellence, implying that true prowess is rare and should be aligned with righteous purpose rather than pride or cruelty.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Exceptional power and skill are acknowledged as rare and almost unparalleled, but the implied ethical point is that such prowess gains true worth only when directed by dharma rather than by arrogance or destructive intent.
Bhīṣma is speaking in the Udyoga Parva context of assessing warriors and the coming conflict, offering authoritative praise that no being—whether among supernatural classes or humans, in past or future—matches the chariot-warrior he has in mind (understood as Arjuna).