Shloka 159
द्रोणपर्व — अध्याय १६२: प्रातःसंध्यायां युद्धप्रवृत्तिः तथा रजोमेघे संमूढता
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्माभारत द्रोणपर्वके अन्तर्गत घटोत्कचवधपर्वमें रात्रियुद्धके प्रसंगमें दुर्योधनका वचनविषयक एक सौ उनसठवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti prakāraṁ śrīmahābhārate droṇaparvake antargata ghaṭotkacavadhaparvaṇi rātriyuddhasya prasaṅge duryodhanasya vacanaviṣayaka ekaśata-unasaṣṭitamo 'dhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ
Thus ends the one hundred and fifty-ninth chapter of the Droṇa Parva of the Śrī Mahābhārata, within the section on the slaying of Ghaṭotkaca, in the context of the night-battle—this chapter being concerned with the words spoken by Duryodhana. The colophon marks a narrative closure: Duryodhana’s speech is framed as part of the ethically fraught nocturnal warfare that culminates in Ghaṭotkaca’s death, highlighting the escalation of tactics and the moral tension of fighting under cover of night.
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
As a colophon, the passage does not teach through direct instruction but signals the moral atmosphere of the episode: the night-battle and Ghaṭotkaca’s death represent a turning point where wartime necessity and ethical restraint come into tension, and Duryodhana’s words are framed within that escalation.
The text is a concluding notice stating that the chapter has ended. It situates the chapter within Droṇa Parva, specifically inside the Ghaṭotkaca-slaying section, during the night-battle episode, and identifies the chapter’s focus as Duryodhana’s speech.