The Social and Military Position of the Ruling Caste in Ancient India, as Represented by the Sanskrit Epic c2.s5.174

c2.s5.174

The Guru-commander commands both by silence and by speech. None would dare to fight without being ordered by him (vii. 112. 14). But, especially in the election, other signs remain that the office of commander is a survival of the king’s own office. The king is put forward more and more, not as a fighter, but as a ‘friendly sign,’ to encourage the soldiers, and his position in front is even thus casually explained.§