Shloka 15
Bhīṣma’s Appraisal of Kaurava Champions (भीष्मकृतः रथिनां गुणनिरूपणम्)
रथसंख्यां तु कार्त्स्न्येन परेषामात्मनस्तथा । तथैवातिरथानां च वेत्तुमिच्छामि कौरव
rathasaṅkhyāṃ tu kārtsnyena pareṣām ātmanas tathā | tathaivātirathānāṃ ca vettum icchāmi kaurava, kurunandana!
杜尤陀那说道：“噢，俱卢之光的考罗婆！敌我两方战车武士之数，以及诸‘阿底罗陀’——大车战士——之数，你皆尽知。我愿从汝处得闻此事。既然祖父毗湿摩善于洞悉两军一切细目，我欲在诸王之前，亲听汝口中所出的评断。”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight of informed counsel in governance and war: a leader seeks authoritative knowledge (counts of rathas and atirathas) before acting, implying that decisions affecting many lives should be grounded in accurate assessment rather than impulse.
In the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war deliberations, Duryodhana addresses a senior Kaurava figure and requests a complete accounting of the chariot-warriors and elite fighters on both sides, wanting this strategic appraisal stated openly before the assembled kings.