Shloka 7
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 25: Kaurava Deliberation and the Search Directive (अन्वेषण-आदेशः)
तत्र दृष्टवा तु राजानं कौरव्यं धृतराष्ट्रजम् द्रोणकर्णकृपै: सार्थ भीष्मेण च महात्मना
tatra dṛṣṭvā tu rājānaṃ kauravyaṃ dhṛtarāṣṭrajam | droṇa-karṇa-kṛpaiḥ sārthaṃ bhīṣmeṇa ca mahātmanā ||
There they beheld the Kaurava king, the son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra—Duryodhana—seated in the royal assembly together with Droṇa, Karṇa, Kṛpa, and the great-souled Bhīṣma. Having met him, those secret agents then addressed him with their report.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how power operates through counsel and intelligence: rulers sit amid senior warriors and advisers, and information (brought by agents) becomes a decisive instrument. Ethically, it points to the responsibility of leadership to use knowledge and counsel in alignment with dharma rather than mere ambition.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that the spies/agents arrive and see Duryodhana in the royal assembly with Bhīṣma, Droṇa, Karṇa, and Kṛpa. After meeting him, they begin delivering their report, setting up the next developments in the Virāṭa episode.