War in Ancient India c8.s1.11

c8.s1.11

Once elected General, the senāpati had full and complete control over the situation. The direction of the campaigns, encountering and withdrawing, were all in his hands. It would appear that he had his own war cabinet in which his immediate lieutenants were members. Thus we notice in the Rāmāyaṇa that Prahasta, the senāpati of the Rākṣasa host, had four sacivas—Narāntaka, Kumbhahanu, Mahānāda and Samunnata—who were also his lieutenants in the battlefield.⁵⁵