Shloka 4

Chapter 19: Prativyūha of the Pāṇḍavas — Vajra (Acala) Formation and Dawn Omens

Devanagari script

महर्षेवचनात्‌ तात वेदयन्ति बृहस्पते: । संहतान्‌ योधयेदल्पान्‌ काम॑ विस्तारयेद्‌ बहूनू,“तात! महर्षि बृहस्पतिके वचनसे ऐसा ज्ञात होता है कि यदि शत्रुओंकी सेना थोड़ी हो, तो अपनी सेनाको छोटे आकारमें संगठित करके युद्ध करना चाहिये और यदि अपनेसे अधिक सैनिकोंके साथ युद्ध करना हो, तो अपनी सेनाको इच्छानुसार फैलाकर खड़ी करे

Transliteration

maharṣe-vacanāt tāta vedayanti bṛhaspateḥ | saṁhatān yodhayed alpān kāmaṁ vistārayed bahūn ||

Translation

तात! महर्षि बृहस्पतींच्या वचनावरून असे कळते की शत्रूची सेना अल्प असेल तर आपली सेना संहत करून युद्ध करावे; आणि शत्रू अधिक असेल तर इच्छेनुसार सेना विस्तारून उभी करावी.

Word by Word

महर्षि-वचनात्from the sage's statement

तातO dear (son)

वेदयन्तिthey make known / they indicate

बृहस्पतेःof Bṛhaspati

संहतान्compactly arrayed / formed into a close body

योधयेत्should cause to fight / should engage in battle

अल्पान्few (in number)

कामम्as desired / at will

विस्तारयेत्should spread out / should extend

बहून्many (in number)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Bṛhaspati

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Military deployment should match circumstances: against a small opposing force, fight in a tight, concentrated formation; against a larger force, expand and spread the formation to meet the threat effectively.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a strategic maxim attributed to the sage-authority Bṛhaspati, explaining how an army should be arranged depending on whether the enemy is fewer or more numerous.