Shloka 1
Virāṭa-parva Adhyāya 29 — Suśarmā’s Counsel and the Coordinated Goharaṇa Plan
वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--राजन्! इसके पश्चात् महर्षि शरद्वानके पुत्र कृपाचार्यने उस समय यह बात कही--'राजन्! वयोवृद्ध भीष्मजीने पाण्डवोंके विषयमें जो कुछ कहा है, वह युक्तियुक्त तो है ही, अवसरके अनुकूल भी है
Vaiśampāyana uvāca—rājan! tataḥ paraṁ maharṣi-śaradvat-putraḥ kṛpācāryas tasmin kāle idaṁ vacanam avocat—“rājan! vayo-vṛddhaḥ bhīṣmaḥ pāṇḍavān prati yad uktavān, tat yuktam eva, kālānukūlam api ca.”
Vaiśampāyana said: “O King! After this, Kṛpācārya, the son of the sage Śaradvat, spoke these words at that time: ‘O King! What the aged Bhīṣma has said concerning the Pāṇḍavas is not only reasonable, but also fitting to the occasion.’”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sound counsel should be both yuktam (rationally justified) and kālānukūlam (timely and suited to circumstances). The verse highlights ethical statecraft: wisdom is not merely correct in principle, but effective and appropriate in context.
The narrator Vaiśampāyana reports that Kṛpācārya speaks in agreement with Bhīṣma, affirming that Bhīṣma’s remarks about the Pāṇḍavas are reasonable and well-suited to the moment, signaling a consensus among senior Kuru elders on the matter under discussion.