Shloka 71

Arjuna’s Advance toward Bhīṣma; The Gāṇḍīva’s Signal and the Armies’ Convergence (भीष्माभिमुखगमनम् — गाण्डीवनिर्घोष-ध्वजवर्णनम्)

Devanagari script

तान्‌ प्रयातान्‌ समालोक्य युधिष्ठिरपुरोगमा:

Transliteration

tān prayātān samālokya yudhiṣṭhira-purogāmāḥ

Translation

三阇耶说：见他们出发前行——由坚战（由提施提罗）在前领军——（画面转向般度五子一方，亦以沉着之志推进）。

Word by Word

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• प्रयातान्: departed / having set out
• प्रयातान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्र-या (धातु: या)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural, क्त (past passive participle), used adjectivally

• समालोक्य: having seen / observing
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-आ-लोक्
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage)

• युधिष्ठिर-पुरोगमाः: those whose leader was Yudhiṣṭhira / led by Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिर-पुरोगमाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधिष्ठिर + पुरोगम (प्रातिपदिक: पुरोगम)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Yudhiṣṭhira

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line foregrounds dharmic leadership in wartime: Yudhiṣṭhira is presented as the one at the forefront, suggesting that even martial action is framed through responsibility, restraint, and moral accountability.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates a visual moment: he observes a group that has begun to move out, with Yudhiṣṭhira leading them. It functions as a transition into the next action on the battlefield, emphasizing who is at the head of the advance.