Shloka 27
Adhyāya 152: Kaurava-sainyavibhāgaḥ
Division and Standardization of the Kaurava Host
योधचन्द्रोदयोद्धूत: कुरुराजमहार्णव: । व्यदृश्यत तदा राजंश्वन्द्रोदय इवोदधि:
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
yodhacandrodayoddhūtaḥ kururājamahārṇavaḥ |
vyadṛśyata tadā rājañ chandrodaya ivodadhiḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: Ketika itu, wahai Raja, samudera besar yang merupakan alam Kuru tampak digoncang dan diangkat oleh terbitnya “bulan” para pahlawan; ia bersinar seperti lautan pada saat bulan naik. Gambaran ini menandakan suatu pengerahan kuasa yang mengembang, mempesona: tenaga dan keangkuhan kerajaan melonjak ketika bala tentera berhimpun, namun kemegahan itu juga meramalkan bahaya moral perang yang digerakkan oleh cita-cita tamak dan ambisi.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how collective military power can appear beautiful and exhilarating—like the ocean brightened at moonrise—yet this very swelling of force can mask the ethical danger of pride and escalation toward war. It invites reflection on how spectacle and momentum can carry a polity away from restraint (dharma) into conflict.
The narrator describes the Kuru realm as a vast ocean stirred by the ‘moonrise’ of assembled warriors. It is a poetic depiction of the kingdom’s martial mobilization and heightened activity as forces gather, suggesting an impending large-scale confrontation.