Shloka 195
भीष्म-द्रोणादिभिः पाण्डवसेनाक्षयकाल-निर्णयः | Time-estimates for the depletion of the Pāṇḍava forces
Bhīṣma–Droṇa council
इति श्रीमहा भारते उद्योगपर्वणि अम्बोपाख्यानपर्वणि कौरवसैन्यनिर्याणे पज्चनवत्यधिकशततमो<ध्याय:
iti śrīmahābhārate udyogaparvaṇi ambopākhyānaparvaṇi kauravasainyaniryāṇe pañcanavatyadhikaśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ
Thus ends, in the revered Mahābhārata, within the Udyoga Parva, in the section known as the Ambā-upākhyāna, the chapter concerning the departure/marching forth of the Kaurava army—this being the one hundred and ninety-fifth chapter. The colophon marks a narrative transition: the epic’s ethical tensions move from counsel and precedent (upākhyāna) toward the concrete mobilization for war, signaling the hardening of choices and the narrowing of peaceful alternatives.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
As a colophon, the verse does not teach through direct instruction; its ethical force lies in framing: after exempla and counsel, the narrative turns to mobilization. It underscores how unresolved adharma and failed reconciliation culminate in irreversible action—war preparations—highlighting responsibility for choices made (or refused) before conflict becomes inevitable.
The text is closing a chapter/section: within Udyoga Parva, in the Ambā episode context, it marks the chapter themed around the Kauravas’ army setting out. Functionally, it signals a transition from story and deliberation to the practical movement of forces toward the coming war.