Shloka 126

Bhīṣma’s Appraisal of Pāṇḍava-Alliance Warriors (Śikhaṇḍin, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, and Allied Kings)

Devanagari script

बालैरपि भवन्तस्तै: सर्व एव विशेषिता: । कुरुनन्दन! इनके आयुधों

Transliteration

bālair api bhavantas taiḥ sarva eva viśeṣitāḥ | kurunandana! eṣāṃ āyudhānāṃ gadānāṃ ca bāṇānāṃ cāghātaṃ kaścid api na soḍhuṃ śaknoti | ataḥ paraṃ na kaścid eṣāṃ dhanuṣi pratyāñcāṃ samāropayituṃ śaknoti, na yuddhe eṣāṃ gurvīṃ gadāṃ samuddhartum, na ca eṣāṃ bāṇān prayoktum | te vegena calane, lakṣyabhede, khāne-pāne tathā dhūli-krīḍāsu ca bālye 'pi tvāṃ parājitavantaḥ |

Translation

Бхишма сказал: «Даже мальчишками они затмевали вас всех, о радость куру. Никто не вынесет удара их оружия — их булав и стрел. Более того, никто не сумеет даже натянуть тетиву на их луки, никто не поднимет в бою их тяжёлые булавы и никто не сможет как следует пользоваться их стрелами. В быстроте бега, в поражении цели, в еде и питье и даже в детских играх в пыли они побеждали вас ещё в вашу собственную пору детства.»

Word by Word

• बालैः: by/with children; even by boys
• बालैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाल
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• अपि: even; also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• भवन्तः: you (honorific, plural)
• भवन्तः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: भवत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• तैः: by them
• तैः: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• एव: indeed; just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• विशेषिताः: distinguished; made special
• विशेषिताः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विशेषित
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural, past passive participle (PPP) from causative of √शिष/√शेष? (vi-√śiṣ/vi-√śeṣ) in sense 'to distinguish, to make special'

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Kurunandana (addressed Kuru prince)
• bows
• bowstrings
• maces
• arrows
• weapons

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma underscores that true strength is proven by capability and discipline, not by status or pride; recognizing another’s superior skill is part of wise counsel and a check against reckless decisions in the lead-up to war.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war counsel, Bhishma reminds a Kuru prince that certain warriors are so formidable that others cannot even handle their weapons, and that this superiority was evident since childhood in contests of speed, skill, and games—warning against underestimating them.