Shloka 26
पाण्डवसेनानायकाभिषेकः तथा बलरामागमन-उपदेशः | Appointment of Pandava Commanders and Balarama’s Counsel
एवं व्यूढान्यनीकानि कौरवेयेण धीमता । अक्षौहिण्यो दशैका च संख्याता: सप्त चैव ह
evaṁ vyūḍhāny anīkāni kauraveyeṇa dhīmatā | akṣauhiṇyo daśaikā ca saṅkhyātāḥ sapta caiva ha ||
Vaiśampāyana disse: Assim, o sábio filho da linhagem dos Kuru (Duryodhana) dispôs as suas formações de batalha em ordenada disposição. No campo de Kurukṣetra, “dez e um”—juntamente com “sete”—perfizeram dezoito akṣauhiṇī reunidas, assinalando a vastidão da guerra iminente e o grave peso moral de escolher o conflito em vez da conciliação.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the immense, organized mobilization for war—implying that when leaders choose hostility over reconciliation, the resulting conflict becomes vast and morally weighty, affecting countless lives.
Vaiśampāyana reports that Duryodhana has arranged the Kaurava forces in battle formations, and the total forces gathered at Kurukṣetra are counted as eighteen akṣauhiṇīs (eleven on one side and seven on the other).