Sutra 9

Devanagari script

पुरस्तादध्याघाते मकरेण यायात्पश्चाच्छकटेन पार्श्वयोर्वज्रेण समन्ततः सर्वतोभद्रेण एकायने सूच्या ॥ कZ_१०.२.०९ ॥

Transliteration

purastād adhyāghāte makareṇa yāyāt paścāc chakaṭena pārśvayor vajreṇa samantataḥ sarvatobhadreṇa ekāyane sūcyā

Translation

Si l’on s’attend à un choc frontal, avancer en formation «makara» ; si la menace vient de l’arrière, employer la formation «chakaṭa» (char) ; si la menace vient des flancs, employer la formation «vajra» (diamant/foudre) ; si la menace vient de toutes parts, employer la formation «sarvatobhadra» (tous azimuts) ; sur une seule piste étroite, employer la formation «sūcī» (aiguille).

Word by Word

पुरस्तात्in front; from the front; forward

अध्याघातेin/at close impact (direct engagement)

मकरेणby/with the Makara (formation)

यायात्should advance/go

पश्चात्behind; from the rear; afterwards

शकटेनby/with the Śakaṭa (cart-shaped formation)

पार्श्वयोःon the two sides / on both flanks

वज्रेणby/with the Vajra (formation)

समन्ततःall around; on every side

सर्वतोभद्रेणby/with the Sarvatobhadra (formation)

एकायनेin a single line / in single file

सूच्याby/with the Sūcī (needle formation)

Entities Mentioned

makara-vyūha

chakaṭa-vyūha

vajra-vyūha

sarvatobhadra-vyūha

sūcī-vyūha

FAQs

What principle governs the choice of vyūha here?

Formation is selected by the direction of threat and the constraint of terrain/route—deploy to cover the most likely attack axis.

Why prescribe ‘sūcī’ on a single narrow route?

A narrow track prevents broad deployment; a needle-like column preserves movement while maintaining controllable order.