Verse 7.194

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

प्रहर्षयेद् बलं व्यूह्य तांश्च सम्यक् परीक्षयेत् ।
चेष्टाश्चैव विजानीयादरीन् योधयतामपि ॥ १९४ ॥

praharṣayed balaṃ vyūhya tāṃśca samyak parīkṣayet |
ceṣṭāścaiva vijānīyādarīn yodhayatāmapi || 194 ||

Having arrayed his forces, he shall encourage them and thoroughly test them; even while they are engaging the enemy, he shall mark their behaviour.—(194).

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

‘Having arrayed his forces,’ and thereby displayed his strength, he shall encourage his men with such words as—‘what is there to win? Our enemies are already as good as defeated by your prowess,’—‘If you win you gain much wealth, and thereby bring happiness to your dependents and others; it you are slain in battle, you gain heaven, and pay off the debt owing to your employer; on the other hand, if you are defeated, you lose all these three advantages;’ and so forth, addressing them such words as may be suitable to the occasion.

He shall also ‘thoroughly test them’; he shall get some one to address them such words as—‘Do not submit to the restrictions laid down by the king,—we could bear all these if the king and the commander exposed themselves and their relations also to the same danger as ourselves,—the king under the pretence of keeping the rear-guard, is keeping himself in a safe place; being a coward he does not wish to enter the fray’ and so forth. On hearing all this some of the men would reply as follows:—‘It is not as you say,—this war is our very own,—and for us, who live by the use of weapons, being killed in battle is a highly desirable end,—not fleeing from battle is the highest duty of warriors, and the abandoning of our duty would be a source of sin,—the king also should be guarded by all means in our power;—when we are done, he shall certainly provide rest and other favours for us,—in fact, that is why he is staying with us’;—those who respond thus he shall treat with special consideration. When they gain a victory, they should be enlogised (eulogised?) and presented with robes of honour, and their attachment should be strengthened by means of embraces, decorations and presents.

While they are engaging the enemy, ‘he shall mart their behaviour’; i.e., find out how his men are behaving and how his treasury is faring. Some men are likely to be half-hearted, while others go to it whole-heartedly,—all this has to be carefully watched, on account of human nature being extremely fickle; and even those who help generally do so for some selfish end.

Having tested his men, he shall place the unreliable ones in the midst of reliable ones, so that they may all reach the enemy’s stronghold.—(194)

The author proceeds to lay down the means of getting at the enemy’s stronghold in the next verse.

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Parāśaramādhava (Ācāra, p. 402);—in Vīramitrodaya (Rājanīti, p. 405);—and in Rājanītiratnākara (p. 27a).