Shloka 6
भीष्मस्य शरवर्षः — Bhīṣma’s Arrow-Storm and Kṛṣṇa’s Impulse to Intervene
अश्वत्थामा, सोमदत्त तथा अवन्तीके दोनों राजकुमार महारथी विन्द और अनुविन्द-- ये विशाल सेनाके साथ व्यूहके वाम पक्षका संरक्षण कर रहे थे ।।
sañjaya uvāca |
aśvatthāmā somadatta tathāvantīke ubhau rājakumārāv mahārathī vindānuvindau—ete viśālena senayā vyūhasya vāma-pakṣa-saṃrakṣaṇaṃ kurvanti ||
duryodhano mahārāja trigarteḥ sarvato vṛtaḥ |
vyūha-madhye sthito rājan pāṇḍavān prati bhārata ||
Dijo Sañjaya: Aśvatthāmā, Somadatta y los dos príncipes de Avanti —Vinda y Anuvinda, todos grandes guerreros de carro—, con un inmenso ejército, custodiaban el ala izquierda del despliegue. Y el rey Duryodhana, oh gran rey, vástago de Bharata, rodeado por todas partes por las tropas de Trigarta, se mantuvo en el centro mismo de la formación, frente a los Pāṇḍava.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores disciplined organization and leadership in war: commanders assign elite warriors to protect vulnerable flanks while the leader holds the center to meet the enemy head-on. Ethically, it also reflects the Mahabharata’s recurring tension—martial duty and courage operating within a conflict whose righteousness is contested.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra the Kaurava deployment: Ashvatthama, Somadatta, and the Avanti princes Vinda and Anuvinda guard the left wing with a large force, while Duryodhana, encircled by Trigarta troops, stands in the center of the formation ready to confront the Pandavas.