Shloka 26
Adhyāya 112: Bhīṣma-prati Arjunasya Pravṛttiḥ
Arjuna’s Forward Drive Toward Bhīṣma
संजय कहते हैं--महाराज! दुर्योधनके ऐसा कहनेपर आपके ताऊ शानन््तनुनन्दन देवव्रतने दो घड़ीतक कुछ चिन्तन करनेके पश्चात् अपना एक निश्चय करके आपके पुत्र दुर्योधनको सान्त्वना देते हुए इस प्रकार कहा--'प्रजानाथ दुर्योधन! सुस्थिर होकर इधर ध्यान दो ।।
sañjaya uvāca—mahārāja! duryodhanasyaivaṃ vacane tava tātaḥ śāntanavanandano devavrato muhūrtadvayaṃ kiṃcid vicintya niścayaṃ kṛtvā tava putraṃ duryodhanaṃ sāntvayann idaṃ vacanam abravīt—“prajānātha duryodhana! susthiraḥ san iha me vacanaṃ śṛṇu. pūrvakālaṃ tava mayā pratijñātaṃ mahābala—hatvā daśasahasrāṇi kṣatriyāṇāṃ mahātmanām, raṇabhūmeḥ na nivartiṣye; etac ca mama nityaṃ karma bhaviṣyati. bharataśreṣṭha! yathā mayoktaṃ tathā etad adyāpi yāvat kṛtam.”
三阇耶说道：“大王啊！当难敌如此言毕，你的祖父提婆跋罗多——善檀奴之子（毗湿摩）沉思片刻，立下决断，随即安慰你的儿子难敌，说道：‘人民之主难敌啊！稳住心神，听我一言。久远以前，噢大力者，我曾为你立誓：不斩杀一万名高魂的刹帝利，我决不退出战场——此亦为我每日之责。噢婆罗多族中最卓越者，正如我所言，我至今皆如此行事。’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the Mahabharata’s emphasis on pratijñā (solemn vow) and steadfastness: Bhishma frames his participation in war as a binding duty undertaken by resolve, showing how personal commitments and warrior-dharma can drive action even amid morally fraught violence.
After Duryodhana speaks, Bhishma (Devavrata), Shantanu’s son, pauses to reflect and then reassures Duryodhana by recalling an earlier pledge: he would continue fighting and not withdraw until he had slain ten thousand Kshatriyas, treating this as his ongoing daily obligation on the battlefield.