स्वयं राजा रथोदारः पाण्डवः कुन्तिनन्दनः ॥
अग्निवत् समरे तात चरिष्यति न संशयः ॥
भीमसेनस् तु राजेन्द्र रथो ऽष्टगुणसंमितः ॥
नागायुतबलो मानी तेजसा न स मानुषः ॥
माद्रीपुत्रौ तु रथिनौ द्वाव् एव पुरुषर्षभौ ॥
अश्विनाव् इव रूपेण तेजसा च समन्वितौ ॥
एते चमूमुखगताः स्मरन्तः क्लेशम् आत्मनः ॥
रुद्रवत् प्रचरिष्यन्ति तत्र मे नास्ति संशयः ॥
सर्व एव महात्मानः शालस्कन्धा इवोद्गताः ॥
प्रादेशेनाधिकाः पुम्भिर् अन्यैस् ते च प्रमाणतः ॥
svayaṃ rājā rathodāraḥ pāṇḍavaḥ kuntinandanaḥ ||
agnivat samare tāta cariṣyati na saṃśayaḥ ||
bhīmasenas tu rājendra ratho 'ṣṭaguṇasaṃmitaḥ ||
nāgāyutabalo mānī tejasā na sa mānuṣaḥ ||
mādrīputrau tu rathinau dvāv eva puruṣarṣabhau ||
aśvināv iva rūpeṇa tejasā ca samanvitau ||
ete camūmukhagatāḥ smarantaḥ kleśam ātmanaḥ ||
rudravat pracariṣyanti tatra me nāsti saṃśayaḥ ||
sarva eva mahātmānaḥ śālaskandhā ivodgatāḥ ||
prādeśenādhikāḥ pumbhir anyais te ca pramāṇataḥ ||
'The king himself, the Pandava, the joy of Kunti, is a noble ratha; in battle, dear one, he will act like fire — of this there is no doubt. Bhimasena, however, O lord of kings, is a ratha reckoned at eightfold measure: he is as strong as ten thousand elephants, proud, and in splendor unlike a mere mortal. The two sons of Madri are both rathas, bulls among men; in beauty and splendor they are like the Ashvins. These warriors, standing at the head of the army and remembering their sufferings, will act like Rudras — of this I have no doubt. All of them are great souls, like grown trunks of the shala tree; in stature they surpass other men by a span.'
fde5b3600b96 · published Jul 17, 2026, 6:32:37 AM UTC
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Bhishma sharply checks Karna, but he does so to preserve the army: before a battle begins, discord within is more dangerous than the enemy without. His subsequent speech about the Pandavas then reads as a sober warning to Duryodhana. He lists not only their strength, stature, and weapons but also the memory of Draupadi's humiliation and the dice game — precisely this memory will fuel their fighting. A special place is given to Arjuna together with Krishna: here the ratha is assessed not merely as a warrior but as an entire fighting reality, in which charioteer, weapons, horses, armor, astras, and inner resolve are joined into a single force.