Shloka 5
सेनापति-निर्णयः तथा पाण्डवसेनायाः कुरुक्षेत्रगमनम्
Decision on Command and the Pandavas’ March to Kurukshetra
अक्षौहिण्यो दशैका च कौरवाणां समागता: । तासां प्रमुखतो भीष्मस्तालकेतुर्व्यरोचत,कौरवोंकी ग्यारह अक्षौहिणी सेनाएँ आ गयी हैं। उन सबमें प्रधान हैं भीष्मजी, जो अपने तालध्वजके साथ सुशोभित हो रहे हैं
akṣauhiṇyo daśaikā ca kauravāṇāṃ samāgatāḥ | tāsāṃ pramukhato bhīṣmas tālaketur vyarocata |
Vāyu berkata: “Kaum Kaurava telah menghimpunkan sebelas akṣauhiṇī bala tentera. Di hadapan semuanya berdirilah Bhīṣma, gemilang dengan panji pohon palma—lambang kekuatan yang berdisiplin, dihimpun untuk perang yang beban moralnya akan menimpa para pemimpinnya.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and organization in war are morally neutral; the ethical weight lies in how leaders employ them. Bhīṣma’s prominence signals disciplined authority, yet it also foreshadows the grave dharmic responsibility borne by elders who lend legitimacy to an unjust course.
Vāyu describes the Kaurava military mobilization: eleven akṣauhiṇīs have gathered, and Bhīṣma stands at their forefront, distinguished by his palm-tree banner, indicating his role as the leading figure among the assembled forces.