Shloka 169
नारायणास्त्र-शमनं द्रौणि-प्रहारश्च
Pacification of the Nārāyaṇāstra and Drauni’s Renewed Assault
इति श्रीमहाभारते द्रोणपर्वणि घटोत्कचवधपर्वणि रात्रियुद्धे संकुलयुद्धे एकोनसप्तत्यधिकशततमो< ध्याय:
iti śrīmahābhārate droṇaparvaṇi ghaṭotkacavadhaparvaṇi rātriyuddhe saṅkulayuddhe ekonasaptatyadhikaśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ
Ainsi, dans le Śrī Mahābhārata, au sein du Droṇa Parva—plus précisément dans la section consacrée à la mise à mort de Ghaṭotkaca—au cœur du combat nocturne et de l’affrontement confus, inextricablement mêlé, s’achève le cent soixante-neuvième chapitre. Ce colophon marque la clôture d’une unité narrative qui encadre l’obscurité éthique de la guerre de nuit, où l’ordre et le discernement sont mis à rude épreuve au milieu du chaos et d’une violence grandissante.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
As a colophon, the verse does not teach through direct instruction; it frames the episode ethically by highlighting 'night-battle' and 'confused melee,' suggesting how warfare can descend into conditions where dharmic clarity is difficult to maintain and moral restraint is tested.
This is the closing marker of the chapter: it states that the 169th chapter ends within the Droṇa Parvan, in the sub-section dealing with Ghaṭotkaca’s death, set amid the night fighting and the chaotic, entangled combat.