Shloka 16
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय 54: फल्गुन-प्रतिरोधः, सौबली-व्यूह-विध्वंसः, दुर्योधन-भीष्म-संवादः
कि नु कृत्वा हित॑ मे स्याद् ब्रूहि माधव माचिरम् | मध्यस्थमिव पश्यामि समरे सव्यसाचिनम्,“माधव! शीघ्र बताइये, क्या करनेसे मेरा हित होगा? सव्यसाची अर्जुनको तो मैं इस युद्धमें मध्यस्थ (उदासीन)-सा देख रहा हूँ
ki nu kṛtvā hitaṁ me syād brūhi mādhava mā ciram | madhyastham iva paśyāmi samare savyasācinam ||
कि नु कृत्वा हितं मे स्याद् ब्रूहि माधव माचिरम् । मध्यस्थमिव पश्यामि समरे सव्यसाचिनम् ॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
In a moment of moral and strategic uncertainty, the verse highlights the urgency of seeking right counsel (from Mādhava/Kṛṣṇa) to determine what course of action truly serves one’s welfare (hita), especially when a key agent of dharma and action (Arjuna) appears detached.
Sanjaya reports a crisis: he perceives Arjuna in the battlefield as if neutral or inactive, and therefore appeals to Mādhava to speak without delay about what should be done to secure the proper outcome.