Shloka 76
Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout
ततस्तेन निनादेन प्रत्यबुद्धयन्त धन्विन: । शिबिरे पाण्डवेयानां शतशो5थ सहस्रश:
tatastena ninādena pratyabuddhyanta dhanvinaḥ | śibire pāṇḍaveyānāṃ śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Then, startled awake by that uproar, the bowmen in the Pāṇḍava camp roused themselves—by hundreds and indeed by thousands. In the chaos of night, the first ethical demand of a warrior is vigilance: the sudden awakening signals both the vulnerability of those at rest and the grim momentum of violence that spares neither sleep nor sanctuary.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights vigilance as a basic warrior-duty and shows how violence disrupts even the protected space of a camp. Ethically, it underscores the fragility of safety in war and the responsibility to remain alert, especially during vulnerable moments like sleep.
A loud uproar breaks out, and as a result the archers in the Pāṇḍava camp awaken in large numbers—hundreds and thousands—indicating a sudden alarm and rapid mobilization amid a nighttime crisis.