Chapter II · Śloka 10
तमुवाच हृषीकेशः प्रहसन्निव भारत |
सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वचः ||
सेनयोरुभयोर्मध्ये विषीदन्तमिदं वचः ||
tam uvāca hṛṣīkeśaḥ prahasann iva bhārata |
senayorubhayor madhye viṣīdantam idaṃ vacaḥ ||
senayorubhayor madhye viṣīdantam idaṃ vacaḥ ||
O Bhārata, Hṛṣīkeśa, as if smiling, spoke these words to the despondent one standing between the two armies.
The detail 'as if smiling' (prahasann iva) is telling: Krishna is not amused by Arjuna's suffering, but his smile suggests an unshaken equanimity — the composure of one who already sees the teaching that will dissolve the grief.