Shloka 17

Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout

Devanagari script

सबल तेन निष्पिष्ट: साध्वसेन च भारत

Transliteration

sabala tena niṣpiṣṭaḥ sādhvasena ca bhārata

Translation

Sañjaya said: O Bhārata, he was crushed by that mighty one, and likewise by Sādhvasena—overpowered in the ruthless press of battle, where strength, not restraint, decides the warriors’ immediate fate.

Word by Word

• सबलः: strong, powerful
• सबलः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सबल
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तेन: by him/with that
• तेन: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• निष्पिष्टः: crushed, ground down
• निष्पिष्टः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: निष् + पिष्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular, क्त (past passive participle)

• साध्वसेन: with fear, in fright
• साध्वसेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: साध्वस
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• भारत: O Bharata (descendant of Bharata)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भारत
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Sādhvasena
• Bhārata (Dhṛtarāṣṭra as addressee)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the brutal immediacy of war: when adharma and vengeance dominate the battlefield, outcomes are decided by sheer force, and warriors are ‘crushed’ without the moderating presence of compassion or restraint.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a warrior was decisively overpowered—‘crushed’—by a strong combatant, and also by Sādhvasena, indicating a swift and violent defeat within the night-raid context of the Sauptika Parva.