आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं समुद्रमाप: प्रविशन्ति यद्वत् | तद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति सर्वे स शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी || 70||

Just as an ocean stays calm despite incessant flow of river waters from all side into it and does not get overwhelmed with more mass, the sage who is not moved by the worldy desires around him attains peace and salvation.

With great powers come greater responsibilities and this is what we must remember in a hybrid warfare scenario. Exhibiting more strengths than desired is counter productive and therefore a careful calibration of the enemies abilities and matching a counter to that is absolutely necessary in war time. The assessment of the weapon capabilities and its effect is required to be understood in order to put forward a counter strategy for nullifying its effect.

या निशा सर्वभूतानां तस्यां जागर्ति संयमी | यस्यां जाग्रति भूतानि सा निशा पश्यतो मुने: || 69||

What all beings consider as night, the evolved consider it for self control or restraint and stay awake and what others take it as day, the evolved introspect.

More you sweat in peace, less you bleed in war - is an often repeated saying in the forces. The able commanders should be thinking all the time and strategizing just like those sages who keep their learning senses on even while others are sleeping thinking it to be the night.

तस्माद्यस्य महाबाहो निगृहीतानि सर्वश: | इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 68||

Therefore, one who has restrained his senses from their objects has truly established in superior knowledge and intellect

Experiences and the intellectual assessments of a situation has an edge in the battlefield. One who has the ability to distinguish between the sensoral data and fog of war and can adequately apply his intellect and experience to segregate the two in order to decide the course of actions is a superior commander and has better chances of winning the war.

इन्द्रियाणां हि चरतां यन्मनोऽनुविधीयते | तदस्य हरति प्रज्ञां वायुर्नावमिवाम्भसि || 67||

As the strong wind takes the boat off its designated course, even one of the senses on which the mind focusses can lead the intellect astray

Several sensors in the battlefield provide a situational awareness to the commander. The health and integrity of each of the sensors is vital to an effective decision support system. In the event of a malfunction of a sensor or even its subversion may lead to sub-optimal situational awareness or even be a complete erroneous situation plotting thereby making the commander take unsuitable decisions resulting into devastating results.

नास्ति बुद्धिरयुक्तस्य न चायुक्तस्य भावना | न चाभावयत: शान्तिरशान्तस्य कुत: सुखम् || 66||

Those whose intellect and contemplation is not aligned can neither have a resolute intellect nor a steady contemplation of a situation and therefore can not seek peace and happiness

Ones knowledge of the domain must be aligned with the sensors that report to him for contemplation. The event which is an outcome of a sensory object must be contemplated in the right way which also must be analyzed and handled by ones intellect to have a optimum decision chain for effective and efficient situational handling in the battlefield

प्रसादे सर्वदु:खानां हानिरस्योपजायते | प्रसन्नचेतसो ह्याशु बुद्धि: पर्यवतिष्ठते || 65||

Peace of mind comes with divine grace which ends all sorrows and the intellect of such person with happy and stable mind set in firm acceptance in God.

While the strategies of wars are very important to be drafted and thought about, it is also important to have a peace of mind. The stability and the clear thought leads to unambiguous actions, invariably giving high and positive returns

रागद्वेषविमुक्तैस्तु विषयानिन्द्रियैश्चरन् । आत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति ॥ २-६४॥

One who has neither attachment nor detachment with an object and views an object with his senses under control attains peace.

There are several situation that arise during war and the war commanders have to make choices pragmatically and most suited to the situation. Bias for and against a situation can lead to sub-optimal results. Therefore, the choices need to be evaluated with its absolute strengths and weaknesses rather than a pre-determined notion about the same. Success lies in the selection of the most suitable choice and wisdom.

क्रोधाद्भवति सम्मोहः सम्मोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रमः । स्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति ॥ २-६३॥

The anger leads to stupidity and the stupidity causes clutter and confused state of mind. Such state of mind destroys the wisdom and when the wisdom gets destroyed, the person loses stability and then gets defeated.

Anger is one of the cause of a defeat. Therefore, exciting anger or provoking your enemy should become a part and parcel of ones strategy. If you are successful in causing an anger through provocation or any other mean, you are causing a retaliation or half cooked response from the adversary. The anger causes a response that are not well thought of and often gives out good returns in war.

ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंस: सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते | सङ्गात्सञ्जायते काम: कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते || 62||

One who thinks about pleasures, get attached to them. The attachments arouse the desire to get those pleasures and when the pleasures are not obtained, it gives rise to anger

Attachment of any form in the battlefield generates weaknesses within, thereby increasing the attack surface for enemy to exploit. The inability to get those with which one is attached leads to anger and anger reduces ones ability to think and comprehend.

तानि सर्वाणि संयम्य युक्त आसीत मत्पर: | वशे हि यस्येन्द्रियाणि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 61||

Therefore, one who wishes to attain a stabilized mind must learn to gain control over his sensory organs and have an equanimous attitude. Only the ones who can control their organs can achieve the stability of mind

The control of the sensors and ensuring that they yield sound and perfect result not caught up by biases and infections are the key to success in a battlefield. The inputs provided by the sensors must be free from any kind of fogs and mist thereby giving the right inputs for further resource mobilization and strategic actions

यततो ह्यपि कौन्तेय पुरुषस्य विपश्चित: | इन्द्रियाणि प्रमाथीनि हरन्ति प्रसभं मन: || 60||

Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that - Infatuation, Attachments and Love if not destroyed enable the sensory organs to abduct the mind of a man who is otherwise trying to stabilize his mind

Any form of war - be it the conventional or a hybrid form of war, there is no room for attachments and bias towards any of the resources or the assets. The infatuation or the bias, love towards an object or resource as well as attachment to an asset is only counter productive in wars. The ability to take decisions in such cases are heavily deteriorated due to the fear of losing the attached object.

विषया विनिवर्तन्ते निराहारस्य देहिन: | रसवर्जं रसोऽप्यस्य परं दृष्ट्वा निवर्तते || 59||

The removal of sensory organs helps one stay away from carnal pleasures, yet the desires remain. The desires in the stabilized mind gets cleaned off when it meets the supreme power

Making a mind stable during war is one of the desired states during a war. The stability of mind comes from a host of comprehensive activities and control. The external noises in war giving rise to what is known as the fog of war needs to be quickly shelved and one needs to listen to the inner self. The clarity of mind free from biases and external disturbances help in taking apt and efficient decisions in real time which is not only suitable for the purpose but also viable.

यदा संहरते चायं कूर्मोऽङ्गानीव सर्वश: | इन्द्रियाणीन्द्रियार्थेभ्यस्तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 58||

Lord Krishna further explained the features of a stable mind by comparing it to a turtle. As a turtle withdraws the exposed part of his body in its shell, men should also be able to withdraw their sensory organs within themselves so as to be away from the carnal pleasures.

The stability of mind during difficult times including that during a war is an important aspect. As the turtle withdraws itself and reduces the attack surface, able commanders must reduce their exposed attack surface so that the adversary's attempts of an attack do not effect him and his assets. The reduction of the attack surface is a comprehensive and important task wherein only the assets that need to be exposed are exposed and the rest are withdrawn.

य: सर्वत्रानभिस्नेहस्तत्तत्प्राप्य शुभाशुभम् | नाभिनन्दति न द्वेष्टि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता || 57||

One who has no attachments and does not get swayed by happiness or sorrow arising out of events is said to be in a state of stabilized mind

During war, in order to be effective, it is important to focus on your acts purely driven by the logics of mind and available resources. Every resource in war has a specific ability and is intended to have a minimum benchmark of performance and therefore, one must not get perturbed with over or under performance of your resources till such time the overall affect is above the benchmark. Efficient commanders always look at the learning for improvement in future and add the aspects to their experience datasets.

दु:खेष्वनुद्विग्नमना: सुखेषु विगतस्पृह: | वीतरागभयक्रोध: स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते || 56||

Lord Krishna continues - One whose mind does not become anxious when faced with sorrow and pain and whose mind does not get swayed when he is in happy state and one who has destroyed the illness, fear and anger - is said to be in a state of stabilized mind

In order to attain a state of pure wisdom and enable one self to take optimal decision and perform effectively and efficiently during war, it is important to leave behind any fear of losses, sense of inability and any doubts one may have regarding his capacities and capabilities. One must go on with what he has and what he has acquired during peace time. This would not only make you more effective and aggressive but would also cover up for your shortcomings if any. The more you focus on your shortcomings in real time during war, the more would it make you weak

श्रीभगवानुवाच | प्रजहाति यदा कामान्सर्वान्पार्थ मनोगतान् | आत्मन्येवात्मना तुष्ट: स्थितप्रज्ञस्तदोच्यते || 55||

Lord Krishna clarified Arjun's curiosity on the stability of mind and said that a man attains a state of stability when he gives up all his worldly desires and gets contended in staying within his ownself.

In the battle field the clarity of minds and thoughts of the commander is one of the most important parameter for winning a war. A stable and thoughtful mind enables good decision making that is based on logic and optimum deployment. The commander believes in his thoughts and abilities and therefore takes decision to execute the same with full dedication and force which ultimately guarantee him success.

अर्जुन उवाच | स्थितप्रज्ञस्य का भाषा समाधिस्थस्य केशव | स्थितधी: किं प्रभाषेत किमासीत व्रजेत किम् || 54||

After listening to Lord Krishna, Arjun askes him as to what are the signs of a person who is in meditative state with stabilized mind. He also asks him as to how this person speak, sit and walk.

The next few verses exhibit the character and the behaviour of a mature commander. The stabilized mind depicts a well informed and bias-free mind that is sane and capable of taking decisions in the most optimal way. The mind in such a state becomes quiet and the mental capabilities coupled with the informative faculties are therefore in their most vibrant form. In such a state of maturity the decisions taken and the execution of the same is completely in sync with each other thereby giving out an optimum result.

श्रुतिविप्रतिपन्ना ते यदा स्थास्यति निश्चला | समाधावचला बुद्धिस्तदा योगमवाप्स्यसि || 53||

You will attain the state of Yoga when your mind confused by varied talks and advices will opt to stabilize in supreme self.

In the battlefield, the fog of war shall be created both by the adversary and ones own advisors inadvertantly or deliberately. Therefore, one must use his own wisdom and evaluate the dynamics of the war. Any state of confusion must be shelved before any decision is arrived at. One must listen to all but believe in ones own assessment. Factor in the knowledge and information, learn to isolate the fog and optimize your decisions and acts.

यदा ते मोहकलिलं बुद्धिर्व्यतितरिष्यति | तदा गन्तासि निर्वेदं श्रोतव्यस्य श्रुतस्य च || 2-52 ||

When the mind and intellect crosses the delusion of desires then you will attain a state of indifference to whathas already been stated and what is yet to be heard.

Importance of Detachment - A biased mind has a drawback of interpreting information as per convenience. The original dataset in the information battlefield is acted upon to derive the desired information, however, the components of quite a large portion is filtered while creating information out of data. Indifference to the large data and the information obtained from the data both are important in the war zone. While information is more crisp, data can be manipulated to create several information which should remain unbiased to situations and conveniences. The growth of computing to the information makeup, to a state of intelligent information has now matured to a state of artificial intelligence and near real predictive models - despite all this the focus of the globe has now shifted towards the Primary Data which is fundamental to the Information mould.

कर्मजं बुद्धियुक्ता हि फलं त्यक्त्वा मनीषिण: | जन्मबन्धविनिर्मुक्ता: पदं गच्छन्त्यनामयम् || 2-51 ||

Those who are endowed with intellectual abilities shun the attachments with the fruits of their deeds and liberate themselves from the bonds of life and death and unite with the creator to attain Nirvana or final salvation.

Detachment of Deeds - The thought about the outcome of the war and the result that the war is likely to give out only biases the mind and does not help in any way to win the war. Therefore, the able war commanders focus on the ways and means at this stage to configure and calibrate them in a way that is best suited for the condition and effectively and efficiently deploy resources and their abilities as planned.

बुद्धियुक्तो जहातीह उभे सुकृतदुष्कृते | तस्माद्योगाय युज्यस्व योग: कर्मसु कौशलम् || 2-50 ||

One who is equanimous and practices the science of work without attachment to success and failure, sin or charity leaves them behind in this life itself. Therefore one must adopt equanimity of mind which is the only way to get away from the tangles of deeds.

Detachment of Deeds - While the deeds are to be given weightage above the outcome , the deeds need to be detached from all tangles of right or wrong. The issues of right or wrong are to be looked at much before the stage sets in for the battle. Once the battle field is set up, the only right is fight with full might rather than evaluate at this stage. Evaluation at this stage would only result into weakening of the system and thereby resulting into a sub-optimal performance in the battle field

दूरेण ह्यवरं कर्म बुद्धियोगाद्धनञ्जय | बुद्धौ शरणमन्विच्छ कृपणा: फलहेतव: || 2-49 ||

The law of equanimity (forget your desires and do not make difference in success and failure) makes the deeds (Karma) a purposeless exercise. Therefore O Dhananjay (Arjuna) take refuge to divine knowledge and insight. Those who seek the fruits of the deed are miserly.

Deeds above Outcome - The larger and the deeper motive behind the war must be kept in mind and then the resources be deployed to achieve those larger objectives rather than smaller and temporary gains. The motives behind the war could be anything in the larger interest and must not be of myopic vision. Such motives could be aspects such as Nationalism, Self Respect and Sovereignty.

योगस्थ: कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय | सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्यो: समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते || 2-48 ||

Performing Yoga is about doing your duties and not have attachments with success or failure. When success and failure are equipoised, this is what is called Equanimous Yoga.

Performance over Results - This is the verse where principles of Karma are defined. It says that the action must be the sole activity in a battlefield, the thought of the result of the battle front must be in the back of the mind and should not be the primary one. If all the positioned assets determined to perform their respective parts of the activity in the battle field just do their jobs optimally , the results of the war would automatically follow. Therefore, a war commander must instill a sense of action in the forces and strive to optimally position his assets in the battlefield with specific jobs and identified tasks including benchmarks of performance.

कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन | मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि || 2-47 ||

You have the right to perform your duties but have no entitlement to the fruits of your actions. Never consider yourself as the cause of the results of your activities nor should you consider yourself a cause for inaction.

Performance over Results - If every asset considers performing to its optimal levels, results are automatically going to follow. Therefore, one must not just look at results in a battlefield but for an optimal performance of every spoke in the wheel as designed. There are times in a hybrid battlefield when one of the elements has to get subdued so as to give boost to the other elements that may be pivotal to strategic win in the battlefield. Every unit therefore must perform in the battlefield as they are scheduled to perform, it is important to be as close to your scheduled performance levels so as to give an overall effect to the battle.

यावानर्थ उदपाने सर्वत: सम्प्लुतोदके | तावान्सर्वेषु वेदेषु ब्राह्मणस्य विजानत: || 2-46 ||

The purpose served by a small pond of water is automatically served by a large lake. Similarly, one who realizes Absolute Truth automatically realizes the Vedas in its spirit.

Absolute Mission and Objectives - Hybrid Warfare is an instrument to gain strategic as well as tactical controls over adversary. A successful deployment of hybridized assets against the chosen and identified adversary assets to attain dominance in any form leads to success in the battlefield. A strategic view of the battlefield and optimal deployment would automatically cater to tactical gains too. In order to attain tactical gains one therefore must not loose sight of the strategic and long term gains as the focus on strategic dominance would also yield short term tactical gains during the hybrid battle.

त्रैगुण्यविषया वेदा निस्त्रैगुण्यो भवार्जुन | निर्द्वन्द्वो नित्यसत्त्वस्थो निर्योगक्षेम आत्मवान् || 2-45 ||

Vedas describes three properties of Material - Sattva(goodness), rajas(passion) and tamas(ignorance). O Arjuna, rise above these and get into the state of pure spiritual consciousness. Free yourself from any kind of conflicts within and focus on divine section of vedas to elevate to the level of Absolute Truth

Tactical results or Strategic win - The intention to win a battle in the hybrid battle field may have its root in tactical triggers such as small provocation, however the win must be strategic. The visible on the surface returns from war may give you pleasure but long term strategic win would give you stability and power. In the current day war context too, we can observe that the physical battlefield sets in after years of turmoil in the region. Invariably, in majority of the cases the turmoil is attributed to the opposing warring parties. Regular intervention in the internal affairs of the opposite party, aligning and dividing the general population of the nation state, bringing them close and sympathetic towards self is something that is followed for long before getting into direct conflicts.

भोगैश्वर्यप्रसक्तानां तयापहृतचेतसाम् | व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धि: समाधौ न विधीयते || 2-44||

Those whose minds are deeply attached with worldly pleasures and their intellects consider it the most important, they do not possess the resolute to achieve and follow the ultimate path of God

Sense of possessiveness with War Resources - If the war commanders get attached to the resources in the battlefield, they would lack the ability to deploy them with efficiency. In order to settle and deploy the resources that are attached to their heart and the mind at appropriate and safe positions, they thereby make use of the resources in a sub-optimal way both at the deployed location as well as the location for which the person was best fitting. Therefore, in any hybrid form of warfare, the resources are required to be first identified, their strengths and weaknesses mapped to the requirement at the battlefield and then optimally deployed in terms of their acumen and strengths.

यामिमां पुष्पितां वाचं प्रवदन्त्यविपश्चित: | वेदवादरता: पार्थ नान्यदस्तीति वादिन: || 42|| कामात्मान: स्वर्गपरा जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम् | क्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति || 43||

O Arjun, people with limited understanding of the vedas get attracted towards the flowery words of vedas that advocate ostentatious rituals to attain the worldly pleasures or elevation to the celestial adobe. They donot visualize the higher principles inscribed in them and glorify only those portions of the Vedas that please their senses and perform rituals to attain an evolved next birth, sensual enjoyment and heavenly planets.

Clarity of vision and watching the undercurrents - The surface of any battlefield is important to watch, however the undercurrent in the environment, perception about the war and the sentiments of your forces are some of the aspects to watch during war. These factors may not directly contribute to winning or losing in the battlefield but definitely has a bearing on the larger returns from the war. Therefore, the war commander must align his vision in accordance with his strengths as well as gauge the undercurrents too.

यामिमां पुष्पितां वाचं प्रवदन्त्यविपश्चित: | वेदवादरता: पार्थ नान्यदस्तीति वादिन: || 42|| कामात्मान: स्वर्गपरा जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम् | क्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति || 43||

O Arjun, people with limited understanding of the vedas get attracted towards the flowery words of vedas that advocate ostentatious rituals to attain the worldly pleasures or elevation to the celestial adobe. They donot visualize the higher principles inscribed in them and glorify only those portions of the Vedas that please their senses and perform rituals to attain an evolved next birth, sensual enjoyment and heavenly planets.

Clarity of vision and watching the undercurrents - The surface of any battlefield is important to watch, however the undercurrent in the environment, perception about the war and the sentiments of your forces are some of the aspects to watch during war. These factors may not directly contribute to winning or losing in the battlefield but definitely has a bearing on the larger returns from the war. Therefore, the war commander must align his vision in accordance with his strengths as well as gauge the undercurrents too.

व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन | बहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम् || 41||

O Descendant of Kurus, the intellect of those who are on this path sets the mind singularly focused, and their aim is one-pointed. But the intellect of those who are irresolute branches out into several directions

Fixation of Controls, aims and objectives - Intellect of a human being controls the mind and the mind controls our actions. Having a pin pointed objective and mission is something that sets a good war commander distinct from others. Uni-focus and targeted approach to attainment of objectives is therefore very important in the battlefield. When the targets and objectives get set, one would then be in a position to deploy the optimal resources in the battlefield to achieve the objectives. Having an irresolute mind not only drives the mind to become multi-branched and therefore optimal actions can not be expected. Therefore in a hybrid battlefield, the priorities must be set and the resources be deployed accordingly to achieve objectives one by one.

नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते | स्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् || 40||

Lord Krishna says -In this format, neither there is a loss nor does it adversely affect, instead it saves you from a great danger of deviating from your Dharma and therefore committing sin

Weighing the options - In every decision that we make needs to be selected from a given sets of choices and the wisdom of the war commander in such selection is an important factor deterministic of the outcome of the war. In a typical form of hybrid warfare for every action there are sets of choices and probably more complex than the normal choices that one makes in life. The ability of the war commander is exhibited in the promptness and swiftness with which the commander looks at all available options, analyze the conditions and then apply his intellect to choose the best optimal choice during his decision making process.

एषा तेऽभिहिता साङ्ख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु | बुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि || 2-39 ||

Lord Krishna says - I have explained to you and you heard - Sankhya Yoga, the one that explains the Analytical Knowledge and now I will tell you about Karmas (Buddhi Yoga) and how you could use your analytical knowledge to free yourself from the bondage of Karmas.

Analytical Knowledge versus Intellect or both - As explained in the above para, one thing emerges very clear that the analytical reasoning is not intellect and intellect is not analytical reasoning in life, however, the ability of analytical reasoning gives one an ability to understand the philosophy of deeds or Karmas. Therefore, the analytical abilities combined with ones intellect has the potential to have a better understanding of the situation, even in the battle field of any nature.

सुखदु:खे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ | ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि || 2-38 ||

Those who treat happiness and sorrow equally, profits and loss similarly and victory and defeat in the same stride and with these engage into the battle are not committing sins.

Emotional Detachment from the subject - When you are at war for a cause, the emotional attachments to the subject must be kept aside. When one gets emotionally attached to a subject, both sides of the coin are not visible and therefore an optimal thought process is very less likely to set in. When you move a little away from the subject and start viewing it from a distance, the visibility becomes greater and the depth of vision goes beyond. In the hybrid form of warfare too, the war commanders must view the entire theatre from a little away from the theatre not physically but rising above the visible horizon of work and performances.

हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् | तस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चय: || 37||

If you fight and get killed, you would attain go to heaven and if you win and survive, you would rule the kingdom in glory . Therefore, at this stage there is nothing more important than fighting, so get determined to fight

Determination and commitment - When the war is announced and the stage is set for the battle, there is no room for reversal. The only duty of a warrior is to fight and win because the end result in any way is going to be good whether you survive the day or you loose the day. The most important aspect of a war is to fight for a win and the determination and commitment that one puts forward to achieve the objectives. The highest levels of determination therefore is needed at this stage to enhance the level of self confidence as well as the confidences of the fighting forces.

अवाच्यवादांश्च बहून्वदिष्यन्ति तवाहिताः । निन्दन्तस्तव सामर्थ्यं ततो दुःखतरं नु किम् ॥ २-३६॥

Also your enemies will speak ill of you and your capabilities. There could be no greater reason to grief than this treatment to you.

Consequences of a step back - One of the backlashes of quitting from the war scene is that one becomes a story for future and quoted as an example of treachery and defeat. Therefore, even losing a battle is a story that speaks of the might of the person, however not fighting a battle and losing is not only disgraceful but portrays very low of a war commander. Therefore, Lord Krishan spells out to Arjuna that once in the battlefield, the only desirable from a commander is to fight, apply strategies and diplomacies to deploy the available resources with a sole intention to win.

भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः । येषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् ॥ २-३५॥

In case you leave the battle field now, the best of the Generals who earlier used to rever you as a great warrior, would consider you a petty character who is scared of war and is running away from fighting

Consequences of a step back - Deterrence in any power equation is a great factor to give you a leg room for development and growth as you are not likely to be engaged by any detractors in petty battle. However, if the situation so demands that you have to enter the battle field, one must not show his back as the deterrence built up earlier was just nominal while the battle is for real and the earlier established "Deterrence" must be proven. One of the backlashes of a battlefield reversal as explained by Lord Krishna is about the dent in the reputation of Arjuna that would tarnish his earlier image of being a great warrior indicates that the earlier reputation of being a mighty empire or republic must be protected at all cost and therefore battle must be fought with full strength and not half hearted

अकीर्तिं चापि भूतानि कथयिष्यन्ति तेऽव्ययाम् । सम्भावितस्य चाकीर्तिर्मरणादतिरिच्यते ॥ २-३४॥

Also, people would ever remember your retreat from a battlefield as a shameful act and for a respectful person, such dishonour is even more than death for him.

Battlefield Reversals - The test of valour is best represented and remembered when put to test and therefore during a battlefield it is not only your prestige and reputation put to test but your past qualification and life style and all other decorations are put to a re-test. Therefore, the excellence in the battlefield or even the reactions in the most trying times reflect the validity of your past deeds and decorations. One must therefore be careful and must apply his complete wisdom and effort without having any iota of doubt in his mind about the battle. Putting the best foot forward not only to win the current battle but also testify ones own achievements of the past.

अथ चेत्त्वमिमं धर्म्यं सङ्ग्रामं न करिष्यसि । ततः स्वधर्मं कीर्तिं च हित्वा पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥ २-३३॥

If you do not fight this religious war , then for not following your religious duty, you would be committing a sin.

Battlefield Reversals - The battle field reversal syndrome is a very normal situation and is likely to influence the warrior for a retreat. A constant motivation is therefore required to be fed to the warring forces and also the consequences of a retreat must be clearly spelt out to the forces so that even the mere thought of a retreat may shiver them of the dire consequences.

यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् । सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् ॥ २-३२॥

O Partha, the son of Pritha ! Suck kinds of wars are an opportunity and like an open door to heaven and such gifted opportunities come to very few lucky ones.

Opportunities in the battle field - There are several instances observed during the war where the war commanders look at it as an extra ordinary opportunity to gain something unusual. It is all about identifying the opportunities and thereafter using appropriate methods to exploit the condition for ones own advantages. Ears and eyes need to remain open to utilize the sensory inputs clubbed with the wisdom to explore unexplored horizons of the domain. The sensors would only see, hear or sense, it is the analytics that should be properly and carefully applied so as to gain super normal advantages.

स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि । धर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते ॥ २-३१॥

Even if you have to look at your dharma (duty) , you should not hesitate to fight as the basic duty of the martial race is to fight for the righteous and there is nothing more important than that.

Be bothered of your assignment - In the battlefield, there are different kinds of assignments given to different sets of people. All assignments are unique in their respect and are distributed among the people as per their abilities and acumen. In the battlefield, every assigned work to individuals must be carried out effectively and efficiently without being concerned about activities that are not assigned to him. If every assignment is performed in its best form , the battle no more remains invincible.

देही नित्यमवध्योऽयं देहे सर्वस्य भारत । तस्मात्सर्वाणि भूतानि न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २-३०॥

O Descendant of Bharat, The soul in all bodies are immortal . It can not be killed, therefore it is not proper for you to grieve for something that is not for grieving and also it is beyond you to grieve for all the creatures on earth.

Responsibility for ones own asset - In the battlefield there are likely to be several casualties, however all damages done to assets are not the responsibility of the war commander. It is important to be responsible for ones own assets and protect them by all means but taking excessive responsibilities that are not in ones control makes the war commander suboptimal during war. The recipe is that - Be responsible for assets that you control and focus on them for your optimal decisions and be vigilant of those that are not in your control to modify and adjust your strategy accordingly.

आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेन-माश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्यः । आश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्यः श‍ृणोति श्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित् ॥ २-२९॥

The element of self and the soul has deep meaning, some view it as a wonder, some explain it as a wonder. Yet some other great men hear it as a wonder and a few do not understand it even after being told about it

System Complexity and Collateral Damages - The battle field systems are so complex and intertwined that an actual and realistic assessment of damage is near impossible. The complexity and interdependence of systems on each other render the estimation of extent of dependence a very abstract quantity. Therefore, in the hybrid battlefields, the collateral damages thatare likely to occur are only indicative in nature and are subjects that can be optimally managed to ensure lesser losses in the battlefield. Trying to accurately fathom the same would be a difficult task and would consume time while the available time should have been spent on effective and optimal planningfor deployment of resources

अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत । अव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना ॥ २-२८॥

All the living beings of the world did not have a form before their birth, nor do theyhave a form after their death, the existence of body is an aspect only in the interim and therefore should not be justified for grieving

Consideration for the important and valued Assets - It is vitally very clear that one must consider protecting assets that are long lasting rather than those assets who have a shelf life. In a battle field while protecting a transient state of an asset one might loose track of the bigger objective and loose sight of important and valued assets. The temporary and the permanent assets must be clearly benchmarked for their asset valuation and accordingly protected and preserved .

जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च । तस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २-२७॥

Even if you think that the soul is always taking birth and also dies , still you have no reason to grieve. Because, in such case, a being that is born would surely die one day at the appointed time and one who dies is bound to get a re-birth again, therefore your grieving is not proper

Warfare has no room for Ambiguity - All ambiguity and thoughts that surge inside the minds of a warrior must be settled before the start of the war as the outcomes of the war that start pouring in after the start of the war - some favorable and some unfavorable would deviate and clutter the minds of the brave further and would start questioning within regarding their decision to fight the war was right or wrong. And as the ambiguity sets in the probability of success would become low, the strike capabilities would reduce, the accuracy would be reduced.

अथ चैनं नित्यजातं नित्यं वा मन्यसे मृतम् । तथापि त्वं महाबाहो नैवं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २-२६॥

Krishna speaks to Arjuna - Even if you think that the soul is always taking birth and also dies , still you have no reason to grieve.

Warfare has no room for Ambiguity - Ambiguity in war is a definite recipe for a non-favorable result. Even if one has doubts about some or other aspects of the components of war, the doubts must be cleared before setting up the stage for war. Doubts lead to sub-optimal performances during the war and half-hearted work or activities carried out do not perform as expected. Therefore, in the modern Hybrid Warfare, the commanders must have their minds absolutely clear regarding various components including the desired results and intent.

अव्यक्तोऽयमचिन्त्योऽयमविकार्योऽयमुच्यते । तस्मादेवं विदित्वैनं नानुशोचितुमर्हसि ॥ २-२५॥

The soul has been defined as one that can not be manifested in any form, it is beyond imagination and it is fault free. Therefore, O Arjuna, see the soul in this form so thatyou dont have resons to grieve.

Indestructible Fault Tolerant System - A fault tolerant system would automatically emerge at the end of the war as the name itself suggests that they are tolerant to any aggression of any kind - planned or non-planned. Like soul that is flawless and beyond imagination, a war worthy system too is fault tolerant and has enough fog of war around it so that not only does the understanding of the system become vague but also the exposed attack surface reduces due t o these fog of war. Therefore, it is important for a stable and resilient war asset to have enough fog of information around it so that most of the attack surface are duly tested in real time and also the attack vector of the enemy is clearly diagnosed and identified.

अच्छेद्योऽयमदाह्योऽयमक्लेद्योऽशोष्य एव च । नित्यः सर्वगतः स्थाणुरचलोऽयं सनातनः ॥ २-२४॥

The soul can not be pierced, it is inflammable, non wettable and non-evaporable. It is eternal, omnipresent, immortal and stable

Fundamental Systems remain for ever - A stable system is created by fortifying all aspects of its threat surface. Identification of threat surface and then a very careful and thorough system analysis and audit results into fortifying all the likely threats that may arise out of the threat vectors on the threat surface. Stable systems are those systems that with stand the pressure of the attack vectors and stay stable during these subjections. In any form of warfare, the winning or losing is determined by what you are leftover with rather than what you have lost to the enemy. The more stable systems that survive at the end of the battle, the more is your score on the battle front. Therefore, the warring commanders should subject their systems to tests during peace time to ensure that these systems survive at the end of the battle

नैनं छिन्दन्ति शस्त्राणि नैनं दहति पावकः । न चैनं क्लेदयन्त्यापो न शोषयति मारुतः ॥ २-२३॥

The soul can not be pierced by any weapon, the fire can not burn it, water can not wet it and the wind can ot dry it.

Fundamental Systems remain for ever - While the test of time subjects all the systems to test and checks for its resilience and tries to identify any vulnerabilities therein, the weaker wsystems and sub-systems fail such testand subside to give way to a robustand new order. The failing systems must collapse so that better systems and global orders are perceived in the dynamic and newer ways. There are no permanent friends and foes in the hybrid battlefield and the dynamics of relationships mustchange in terms of ones strengths and weaknesses. The systems that have strengths and surpass the test of time have more allies than the ones that have persistent weaknesses. Therefore, even while preaching Arjuna about the inherent truths of life Lord Krishna insists thatnothing can destroy what is indestructible.

वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि । तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णान्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही ॥ २-२२॥

As a man discards his old worn out clothes and put on new ones, even the souls leave the worn out and aged bodies to take new forms and shapes

Change Management - The need for a change has been observed in every walk of life. The identification of the aspects that require change to be more effective and efficient is something that needs to be carried out systematically and without bias. Need assessment therefore forms an important ingredient of the Change Management Life Cycle. As Krishna says that the old and the worn out body is left out by the soul to take on a new body and form, similar to it, the old legacy and redundant systems are therefore replaced with new and versatile efficient system during change management process. The existing lacunae in the older system is sought to be changed or removed.

वेदाविनाशिनं नित्यं य एनमजमव्ययम् । कथं स पुरुषः पार्थ कं घातयति हन्ति कम् ॥ २-२१॥

Krishna addresses Arjuna and says - O Partha, One who recognises the soul as immortal, omnipresent, immutable and non-spendable, how can you even think that you are going to kill someone or someone is going to be killed by you.

Locus of Control and the central point - During a battlefield every person is important and tries to be the locus of control of the war. The basic assumption that one is the central point of activity is full of fallacy. Every battlefield assets (men, material, money) are all equally responsible for winning or losing a war. Every one is central to himself and must fight the battle as the main point of contact. Arjuna begins to think that he is the one who is to kill or destroy all enemy structures, however Lord Krishna explains to him that nothing is destructible and would take a new shape after the battle gets over. The replaceable assets would be destroyed to create new and innovative assets and so on.

न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन् नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः । अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥ २-२०॥

The Soul is neither born nor does it die, it does not appear nor does it not exist, it had been for ever. Since the Soul is not born, ever present, ever lasting, it does not die when the body perishes

Robust and resilient Systems and Processes - Robust and resilient systems and processes emerge out of years of experience and smoothening and therefore can withstand tremors and destabilization attempts. The systems that are developed over sound principles exist in eternity and are non-destructible by opposing forces. The digital fortress should be formed with very carefully thought out processes and materials so that they stay in eternity against all odds

य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् । उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥ २-१९॥

The soul in a body neither kills any one nor can it be killed by any one. All those who think this way are ignorant and unwise. The soul is immortal.

Survival of the fittest - The fit and the robust are not the ones that are sacrificed in any tests of time. The ones that are framed and has a solid foundation of its being are the ones who would survive all odds . Therefore, such systems that are drawn up on sound principles of reasoning and logic and have been formed by the best of the sane minds without any human biases and vices are sure to be the winner during any form of warfare. We must therefore strive to set those systems in place that are free from any bias and vices and would be the ones that would ultimately survive.

अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ताः शरीरिणः । अनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्माद्युध्यस्व भारत ॥ २-१८॥

All the living bodies are mortal and destructible, whereas, the soul is immortal and all these bodies belong to this imperishable, immortal and ever present soul which never perishes. Therefore, O Arjuna, you must battle .

Survival of the fittest - Resilient and robust processes shall emerge and exist in eternity, the systems supporting those processes may fail and not survive the test of the times, newer systems would be developed that would be more resilient, vibrant and robust as it would have all the gaps filled during design. It would incorporate and take care of the follies and process pollution into account while its development and new birth takes place. Cleansing of the systems as a part of the management audit in any organization therefore should not be taken as an added task but a process of cleansing of the existing system. It also conveys that the systems and processes that pass the test of the times must stay and the gaps created by elimination and destruction of the systems and sub-systems must be replaced with more vibrant, useful and dynamic systems.

अविनाशि तु तद्विद्धि येन सर्वमिदं ततम् । विनाशमव्ययस्यास्य न कश्चित्कर्तुमर्हति ॥ २-१७॥

This way you must understand the fact that what is visible on earth is intact because what is etrnal element , is indestructible by any force and it would stay for ever.

The World and Sub-System Correction - Humans have a tendency to create comforts around themselves even at a cost of disturbing and defying the natural world eco systems, therefore a course correction is a natural phenomenon where the more resilient and robust are allowed to persist and the non-resilient systems are given away through destruction, disruption and destabilization. Therefore, the learning for the current daya global eco system is that during the test of times only those systems shall survive that pass the criteria of resilience and robustness and survive even against all odds. The systemic rough and rugged test of the IT Systems as well are catalyst in letting only the worthy continue and rest perish.

नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सतः । उभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभिः ॥ २-१६॥

The Untruth has no existence and Truth is visible in abundance everywhere as the Truth is imperishable. The wise ones see these properties of truth and untruth very clearly.

Survival of the Resilient and Robust - As stated in the Shloka, it is very clear that Truth is related to systems that have been built on sound principles and motives and therefore they exist in eternity, however the systems that are built upon false premises and unsound philosophies and motives tend to survive only temporarily and get destroyed during test of times. Therefore, it is important that the systems get frequently tested for their robustness and resilience so that systems that need to fade away are shown their way out of the system. The wise warriors must be enabled to identify good from bad and bad from ugly. The sieving of the systems therefore forms an integral part of the abilities of a war commander.

यं हि न व्यथयन्त्येते पुरुषं पुरुषर्षभ । समदुःखसुखं धीरं सोऽमृतत्वाय कल्पते ॥ २-१५॥

Those who take joy and sorrow in equal stride and those who donot get effected by the effects of pleasure and sorrow are the ones who get ultimate salvation in life.

Loss and gains in war - Professionalism in warfare is something that needs to be practiced. Winning or losing is a matter of details. The best of the war commanders who are remembered for eternity are not those who won wars but those who exhibited the most professional and strategic moves to fight the battle. Therefore, battlefield is all about exhibition and practice of the most effective and efficient planning , deployment and management of resources keeping in view the opportune time and motivation. Temporary losses and gains must not perturb or disturb the entire eco system of warfare and the net result keeping in view the objectives, must remain the ultimate target.

मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदुःखदाः । आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत ॥ २-१४॥

O Kaunteya (Arjun), Sensory and material joys are like heat and cold that give temporary blow and are not permanent. They come and go. Therefore, bear with them as they come to you

Loss and gains in war - War commanders should be prepared to loose and gain during war, however getting sentimentally and emotionally attached to some subjects makes the war commander weak and loose focus during war in grief. Therefore, the men, material and money should be treated as resources during the war rather than somethings that can give eternal joy or pain. The protection of resources should be an attempt to minimize losses rather than being something that in the situation of a loss , be grieved upon. The fear of loss of resources in the battlefield was beginning to weaken Arjuna and therefore Krishna had to explain that the new must replace the old and sorrow and happiness are two sides of the coin and are meant to come and go.

देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा । तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति ॥ २-१३॥

As in this Body, the soul is carried through the stages of childhood, youth and old age, similarly it is carried forward to another birth, another body and another life. Therefore, the learned people do not worry about these things.

Life of Legacy Systems and Change- Wars expose several weaknesses in the system wherein gaps and vulnerabilities are automatically identified. During the war a number of systems would be destroyed due to its weaknesses and therefore would give rise to new systems in future capable of handling those weaknesses in a much more efficient manner. Older and legacy systems need to be changed for a better and more effective and efficient systems. One therefore must not be too concerned about falling down of systems during the war time as it would provide opportunity for development of new and versatile systems, free of vulnerabilities that led that fall.

न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपाः । न चैव न भविष्यामः सर्वे वयमतः परम् ॥ २-१२॥

It is not that at the time of creation I was not there or you were not there or these kings were not there. Also, in future too we all will exist and therefore there is no reason to grieve as it is an ongoingcycle of birth and death.

Emotional Attachment to Assets - Wars cause loss of men and material and therefore the war commanders normally tend to be possessive towards their men and materials, it is important to be detached from such emotional ties so that one can gainfully utilize the resources as per their values. Emotional tie ups disables the war commanders from effectively and efficiently gauging the potential of their men and material to deploy them at comparable asset positionings. Its like a game of chess wherein one sacrifices some assets to save and pivot other assets and resources for a bigger gain. In war too, bigger gains for smaller losses are absolutely wise and if one gets attached emotionally , sacrifices can not be made thereon.

श्रीभगवानुवाच । अशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे । गतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिताः ॥ २-११॥

Lord Krishna then spoke - Hey Arjun, you are grieving for those who donot observe to be grieved. While you talk like a knowledgeable person, such people donot grieve for those who are dead or not dead.

Catalyst in War - Trigger in war is an important parameter for understanding and activating the dynamics of war. Lord Krishna activated and triggered Arjuna for preparing himself for war. He deliberately says - "You claim yourself to be knowledgeable" acts like a catalyst as no one would like to be addressed as not-knowledgeable. The trigger for Arjuna to think otherwise can come only from the fact that the idea which he is towing with is curtailed by another diverse idea that is propounded by Lord Krishna in the current context. Therefore, in the warfare format too, the war commanders have to be challenged and catalyzed to put in their best effort rather than thinking emotionally regarding the damages etc that are likely to accrue as a result of the war

तमुवाच हृषीकेशः प्रहसन्निव भारत । सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वचः ॥ २-१०॥

Thereafter, O Dhritarashtra, descendant of Bharat dynasty, Hrishikesh (Krishna) sarcastically smiled and said to Arjuna who was in grief amid the two armies

Importance of identification of Allies - The basic fact that the word 'smiling sarcastically' is being overplayed in this context has some significance. Sanjaya mentions it as an important point to Dhritarashtra as he would have liked listening to such points and also would develop a sense of interest to know more as to what Krishna had to say on the grief of Arjun. Dhritarashtra could have been interested or desired that Krishna should counsel Arjun not to fight and that his fear about the opposing army is right. This could have a slight possibility of evading the war. Hope therefore prevails till the last moment. Dhritarashtra was also expecting Krishna to be favouring no fight among brothers and settling out the issue as is where is basis. In any form of warfare, therefore, the importance must be given to important events rather than the events that pleases the rulers.

सञ्जय उवाच । एवमुक्त्वा हृषीकेशं गुडाकेशः परन्तप । न योत्स्य इति गोविन्दमुक्त्वा तूष्णीं बभूव ह ॥ २-९॥

Sanjaya said to Dhritarashtra - After speaking to Hrishikesh (Lord Krishna) , Arjun, who is free from ignorance and who has won over his enemies said that he would not fight the war and has now fallen silent.

Re-affirmation for Decision Chains - Any form of management is about making right selection from the given choices depending upon the situation at hand. In this case too, while Arjuna is stuck on his decision based on his wisdom about Dharma and other learnings of humanity, it is important for him to evaluate other criteria too while arriving at a decision. Therefore, the Decision Support System that would be subsequently provided to him by Lord Krishna would be based on the historical knowledge that he would provide to Arjuna in later sequences as well as the predictive abilities of Lord Krishna that would be instrumental in provision of a decision support to the mighty Arjuna. Thus, best of the war commanders would also require understanding the past patterns as well as Artificial Intelligence based sub systems to arrive at a decision.

न हि प्रपश्यामि ममापनुद्याद् यच्छोकमुच्छोषणमिन्द्रियाणाम् । अवाप्य भूमावसपत्नमृद्धं राज्यं सुराणामपि चाधिपत्यम् ॥ २-८॥

Arjun says - I do not see the way or means that can relieve me of the grief of my senses drying up even if I get the crown of the world's most prosperous kingdom unrivalled.

Return on Investment in War - Every form of warfare is fought with an intention in mind. Expectations of the war could be in terms of wealth, reputation or supremacy. Before one goes for the war, it is important to conduct an unbiased assessment of the situation and calculate the return on investment in war. Both sides are likely to gain and loose some parts of their assets and therefore a very careful systematic qualitative as well as quantitative assessment of the outcome should be estimated. In the current shloka, Arjuna is trying to weigh the accession of the crown versus the loss of senses and his own people in war. Therefore, as per him the return that he was expecting fell short of what he was likely to obtain as a result of the war.

कार्पण्यदोषोपहतस्वभावः पृच्छामि त्वां धर्मसम्मूढचेताः । यच्छ्रेयः स्यान्निश्चितं ब्रूहि तन्मे शिष्यस्तेऽहं शाधि मां त्वां प्रपन्नम् ॥ २-७॥

Arjun seeks Lord Krishna help in demystifying the doubts that have got instilled in his mind and is making him weak and emotional relating the subject of Dharma and Karma. Arjuna asks Lord Krishna to guide him at this juncture and remove all the clouds that are surrounding his mind in terms of the right approach.

Certificate of Authenticity and Strength - One may have the strongest of the weapons and strategies in place, the war time scenario needs a re-testing and aligning of the thought processes. While Arjuna was acknowledged as the best warrior, despite that the state of confusion in which his mind was at the threshold of the war is reflective of the fact that the systems and commanders need re-assurances from someone credible to re-ascertain their confidence and trust in the systems. No commander who prepares himself for war prepares to lose, therefore the weakness even if it is Psychological and doubts even if it is emotion laden needs to be resolved before the start of the war.

न चैतद्विद्मः कतरन्नो गरीयो यद्वा जयेम यदि वा नो जयेयुः । यानेव हत्वा न जिजीविषाम- स्तेऽवस्थिताः प्रमुखे धार्तराष्ट्राः ॥ २-६॥

Arjun continues - We donot even know as to fighting the war is right or wrong. Also, we are not even sure of our victory, it might happen that sons of Dhritarashtra may prevail over us. Those after killing whom, we donot want to live, they are standing before us to fight.

Fog of War - Self inflicted fog of war that sets in confusions in the mind of the war commander is a definite weakness that sets in during war. It is also important to identify such confusions in the enemy side so that it can be adequately exploited. Consider a situation wherein someone from the Kauravas had known that Arjuna is getting weak and trying to avoid the war, the same information could have been exploited to make him further weak. Therefore, it is important in any form of warfare that the fog is de-mystified, but it is also important to make attempts to identify fogs on the sides of the enemy commands.

गुरूनहत्वा हि महानुभावान् श्रेयो भोक्तुं भैक्ष्यमपीह लोके । हत्वार्थकामांस्तु गुरूनिहैव भुञ्जीय भोगान् रुधिरप्रदिग्धान् ॥ २-५॥

He continued - Instead of killing the great elders and teachers, I would prefer living a life like a beggar surviving on foods received in alms. Because, by killing the great sould, I would be indulging in blood soaked pleasures only.

Brain Blockade - Just before the battle begins, it is very likely and natural to generate doubt in ones mind regarding the outcome of the war. A sense of uncertainty begins to prevail in ones mind regarding the battle and excessive thinking on the lines actually has a tendency to weaken the morale of the forces and therefore at this stage a proper balanced motivator like Lord Krishna would be a very strong cementing bond and ensure that the weakness that sets in is adequately controlled through counter arguments and justifiable facts and figures regarding the battlefield.

अर्जुन उवाच । कथं भीष्ममहं सङ्ख्ये द्रोणं च मधुसूदन । इषुभिः प्रतियोत्स्यामि पूजार्हावरिसूदन ॥ २-४॥

Arjuna then spoke - O Madhusudan , how would I use my arrows against Bhisma and teacher Drona, who are my revered elders and worshippable.

Brain Blockade - The fear of fighting those who have been legends in their respective field is a great delimiter to the morale of the fighters. The name itself is enough to cause a perceptive defeat in the battlefield. Therefore, prior to the commencement of war, it is important to highlight the achievements of the credible war commanders and stories of their valour need to be put forth to the enemy team. Such stories act in the favour of the side that has such valiant heroes. A perception management regarding the leadership abilities and the decisive strategies that these leaders are likely to follow keeps the opposite side on a back foot .

क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते । क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप ॥ २-३॥

Therefore O Partha (Arjun) donot be an impotent, that doesnot befit your character. O Parantapa (Arjun), remove the weakness of your heart and face the battle

Support Re-affirmation - While Arjuna was expressing his doubts over the war, Lord Krishna came to impress upon him as to why the battle field is the only resort as of now and facing the battle is exactly what a valiant warrior like Arjun must do. Motivation and enhancing the morale of the war commander is essential in battlefield and if the war commander has any doubts left behind, it has devastating effect on the morale and the outcome of the war. Therefore, in a Hybrid Warfare front, it is important to highlight the might of independent war commander so that they instill confidence in themselves and in turn lead their army from the front.

श्रीभगवानुवाच । कुतस्त्वा कश्मलमिदं विषमे समुपस्थितम् । अनार्यजुष्टमस्वर्ग्यमकीर्तिकरमर्जुन ॥ २-२॥

Lord Shri Krishna spoke to Arjuna - Why such emotional weakness at this critical hour which is unlikely of being an Aryan and neither is appreciable in the heaven nor earns you any glory

War time Resonance - While Arjuna was a little confused about his actions as he was on the threshold to decide as to fight or not to fight, a trigger and attestation of a thought process could act as a catalyst to his actions. Krishna's speech was a catalyst for Arjuna to take all his doubts away and fight the war with complete valour and might. Modern day warfare too has similar connotations where the slightest of the doubts should be removed before going to war. Fog of war in any form should be completely demystified so that the entire effort during war is devoid of any such thought processes that bring in ambiguity during the war.

सञ्जय उवाच । तं तथा कृपयाविष्टमश्रुपूर्णाकुलेक्षणम् । विषीदन्तमिदं वाक्यमुवाच मधुसूदनः ॥ २-१॥

Sanjaya said - Madhusudan (Lord Krishna) said these words to him who was full of tears in his eyes completely overwhelmed by self-pity and despondency.

While creating the narrative as to how all attempts were made to avoid the war so that the death and destruction should not be attributed to the war commander, now the final blow to it was required in terms of re-assurances and confirmation of the narrative by someone who was very powerful and had a say in the complete order. Lord Krishna in the current case was an order in itself and therefore his view on the subject was absolutely essential. This can also be manifested in terms of support. In the modern forms of warfare too, these narratives are testified and supported by the ambient global order.