Shloka 45
भीष्मरक्षण-प्रकरणम् / The Protective Screen around Bhīṣma and the Śalya–Yudhiṣṭhira Clash
ते रथै: सुसम्प्रयुक्तिर्दन्तिभिश्न महारथा: । परिवार्य रणे भीष्म॑ दंशिता: समवस्थिता:,वे समस्त कौरव महारथी सुशिक्षित रथों और हाथियोंसे भीष्मको घेरकर कवच आदिसे सुसज्जित हो युद्धके लिये खड़े हो गये
te rathaiḥ susamprayuktir dantibhiś ca mahārathāḥ | parivārya raṇe bhīṣmaṃ daṃśitāḥ samavasthitāḥ ||
Sanjaya said: Then those great warriors, with chariots well-yoked and with war-elephants, surrounded Bhishma on the battlefield. Armoured and fully equipped, they took up their positions, ready for combat—an image of disciplined martial order gathered around the commander they had chosen to uphold their cause.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethic of organized duty in war: warriors, properly equipped and disciplined, gather around their commander. It reflects how collective resolve and loyalty to leadership operate within the chosen side’s understanding of kṣatriya-dharma, even when the larger moral stakes of the war remain complex.
Sanjaya describes the Kaurava elite warriors assembling with chariots and elephants and forming a protective encirclement around Bhishma on the battlefield. Armoured and ready, they take their stations for the coming engagement.