Shloka 4

Devanagari script

महर्षेवचनात्‌ तात वेदयन्ति बृहस्पते: । संहतान्‌ योधयेदल्पान्‌ काम॑ विस्तारयेद्‌ बहूनू,“तात! महर्षि बृहस्पतिके वचनसे ऐसा ज्ञात होता है कि यदि शत्रुओंकी सेना थोड़ी हो, तो अपनी सेनाको छोटे आकारमें संगठित करके युद्ध करना चाहिये और यदि अपनेसे अधिक सैनिकोंके साथ युद्ध करना हो, तो अपनी सेनाको इच्छानुसार फैलाकर खड़ी करे

Transliteration

maharṣe-vacanāt tāta vedayanti bṛhaspateḥ | saṁhatān yodhayed alpān kāmaṁ vistārayed bahūn ||

Translation

Sinabi ni Sañjaya: “Anak ko, mula sa aral ng dakilang rishi na si Bṛhaspati, ito ang nauunawaan: kapag kakaunti ang hukbo ng kaaway, dapat lumaban sa pamamagitan ng masiksik at siksing pormasyon; ngunit kapag marami ang kaharap, dapat ilatag ang hukbo nang maluwang ayon sa nararapat.”

Word by Word

महर्षि-वचनात्from the sage's statement

तातO dear (son)

वेदयन्तिthey make known / they indicate

बृहस्पतेःof Bṛhaspati

संहतान्compactly arrayed / formed into a close body

योधयेत्should cause to fight / should engage in battle

अल्पान्few (in number)

कामम्as desired / at will

विस्तारयेत्should spread out / should extend

बहून्many (in number)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Bṛhaspati

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Military deployment should match circumstances: against a small opposing force, fight in a tight, concentrated formation; against a larger force, expand and spread the formation to meet the threat effectively.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a strategic maxim attributed to the sage-authority Bṛhaspati, explaining how an army should be arranged depending on whether the enemy is fewer or more numerous.