Shloka 9
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय ११०: पार्थभीमयोः प्रहारः तथा भीष्माभिमुखं संग्रामविस्तारः
Arjuna and Bhima’s pressure; escalation toward Bhishma
न्यविशत् कुरुभि: सार्ध हृष्टरूपै: समन््तत: । भारत! भीष्म भी समरभूमिमें सूृंजयों तथा पाण्डवोंको जीतकर आपके पुत्रोंद्वारा प्रशंसित और अभिवन्दित हो अत्यन्त हर्षमें भरे हुए कौरवोंके साथ शिविरमें गये ।। ततो रात्रि: समभवत् सर्वभूतप्रमोहिनी,तत्पश्चात् सम्पूर्ण भूतोंको मोहमयी निद्रामें डालनेवाली रात्रि आ गयी। उस भयंकर रात्रिके आरम्भकालमें वृष्णिवंशियोंसहित दुर्धर्ष संजय और पाण्डव गुप्तमन्त्रणाके लिये एक साथ बैठे
sañjaya uvāca |
nyaviśat kurubhiḥ sārdhaṃ hṛṣṭarūpaiḥ samantataḥ |
tato rātriḥ samabhavat sarvabhūtapramohinī |
tatpaścāt sampūrṇa-bhūtān mohamayīṃ nidrāṃ prāpaṇayantī rātriḥ samupasthitā |
tasyā bhīṣaṇāyā rātryā ārambhakāle vṛṣṇivaṃśyaiḥ saha durdharṣaḥ sañjayaḥ pāṇḍavāś ca guptamantraṇāyai ekatra niṣeduḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Surrounded on all sides by the Kurus, whose faces shone with exhilaration, Bhīṣma withdrew to the camp after defeating the Sṛñjayas and the Pāṇḍavas on the battlefield, and he was praised and respectfully greeted by your sons. Then night arrived—the night that bewilders all beings—casting the whole world into delusive sleep. At the beginning of that dreadful night, the hard-to-overcome Sañjaya and the Pāṇḍavas, together with the Vṛṣṇis, sat in one place to hold a secret council.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how victory and praise can swell morale, yet night—symbolic of moha (bewilderment)—falls equally on all beings. Ethically, it suggests vigilance: in war and in life, exhilaration after success must be tempered by clear counsel and disciplined strategy, especially when the mind is prone to confusion.
After a day’s fighting in which Bhīṣma has the upper hand against the Sṛñjayas and Pāṇḍavas, he goes back to the Kaurava camp amid celebration and salutations. Night then arrives, and at its onset the Pāṇḍavas, along with the Vṛṣṇis, sit together for a confidential strategic consultation.