Shloka 26
अध्याय १ — न्यग्रोधवनोपवेशनम् तथा द्रौणिनिश्चयः
Night at the Banyan and Drauṇi’s Resolve
इच्छया ते प्रवल्गन्ति ये सत्त्वा रात्रिचारिण: । दिवाचराश्ष ये सत्त्वास्ते निद्रावशमागता:
icchayā te pravalaganti ye sattvā rātricāriṇaḥ | divācarāś ca ye sattvās te nidrāvaśam āgatāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “Those creatures that move by night began to roam and leap about as they pleased; and those beings that move by day fell under the dominion of sleep.” In the war’s aftermath, the verse marks the shift into darkness—when ordinary order reverses and the night becomes the stage for what is to follow.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how night alters the world’s moral and practical balance: the vigilant become vulnerable, and those suited to darkness gain freedom of movement. In the Sauptika context, this reversal foreshadows actions carried out when others are overcome by sleep, raising implicit ethical tension about deeds done under cover of night.
Sañjaya describes the onset of night: nocturnal beings become active and roam freely, while daytime creatures fall asleep. This sets the scene for the events of the Sauptika Parva, where the sleeping state of others becomes narratively significant.