Shloka 15
अध्याय ५५ — भीष्मस्य प्रचण्डविक्रमः, अर्जुनप्रत्युत्तरं, कृष्णस्य चक्रोद्यतिः
Chapter 55: Bhīṣma’s onslaught, Arjuna’s counter, and Kṛṣṇa’s raised discus
ततो दुर्योधनो राजा सहित: सर्वसोदरै: । अश्वातकैर्विकर्णक्ष॒ तथा चाम्बछकोसलै:
tato duryodhano rājā sahitaḥ sarvasodaraiḥ | aśvātakaiḥ vikarṇaś ca tathā cāmbaṣṭha-kosalaiḥ śakunine (sabalaputrāya) senā-sahitaḥ droṇācārya-rakṣaṇe yogaṃ dadau |
サンジャヤは言った。「それから王ドゥルヨーダナは、すべての兄弟を伴い、アシュヴァータカ、ヴィカルナ、アンバシュタ、コーサラの勇士らと合して、ドローナーチャールヤを守るために軍を整えた。さらに彼は歓喜に満ち、兄弟と同盟軍に囲まれつつ、スバラの子シャクニの軍をも護る役を引き受けた。」
(संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, leaders prioritize the protection of key commanders and allies; ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension between loyalty to one’s faction and the broader demands of dharma—showing how strategic cohesion can persist even when moral clarity is strained.
Sañjaya reports that Duryodhana, with his brothers and allied regional contingents, commits his forces to guarding Droṇācārya and then to protecting Śakuni’s army—indicating a deliberate consolidation of defensive support around crucial Kaurava leaders.