August 22,2012.Day 16. BHAGAVAD GITA - As It -(Continued) TEXT 11

ayanesu ca sarvesu 
yatha-bhagam avasthitah 
bhismam evabhiraksantu 
bhavantah sarva eva hi

SYNONYMS

ayanesu--in the strategic points; ca--also; sarvesu--everywhere;yatha-bhagam--as they are differently arranged; avasthitah--situated;bhismam--unto Grandfather Bhisma; eva--certainly; abhiraksantu--support may be given; bhavantah--all of you; sarve--respectively; eva--certainly; hi--and exactly.

TRANSLATION

Now all of you must give full support to Grandfather Bhisma, standing at your respective strategic points in the phalanx of the army.

PURPORT

   Duryodhana, after praising the prowess of Bhisma, further considered that others might think that they had been considered less important, so in his usual diplomatic way, he tried to adjust the situation in the above words. He emphasized that Bhismadeva was undoubtedly the greatest hero, but he was an old man, so everyone must especially think of his protection from all sides. He might become engaged in the fight, and the enemy might take advantage of his full engagement on one side. Therefore, it was important that other heroes would not leave their strategic positions and allow the enemy to break the phalanx. Duryodhana clearly felt that the victory of the Kurus depended on the presence of Bhismadeva. He was confident of the full support of Bhismadeva and Dronacarya in the battle because he well knew that they did not even speak a word when Arjuna's wife Draupadi, in her helpless condition, had appealed to them for justice while she was being forced to strip naked in the presence of all the great generals in the assembly. Although he knew that the two generals had some sort of affection for the Pandavas, he hoped that all such affection would now be completely given up by them, as was customary during the gambling performances.

Therefore you should be very careful. Though you are divided into different groups (yatha bhagam) for the purpose of entering into the enemy lines (ayanesu), you should not give up your designated positions on the battlefield. Being fixed in your respective positions, protect Bhisma on all sides, so that he is not attacked from behind while engaged in fighting with others. The implication here is "Only by the strength of Bhisma will we survive."