Shloka 163
इस प्रकार श्रीमह्ााभारत द्रोणपर्वके अन्तर्गत घटोत्कचवधपर्वमें यात्रियुद्धके अवसरपर प्रदीपोंका प्रकाशविषयक एक सौ तिरसठवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
Iti prakāraṃ śrīmahābhārata droṇaparvake antargata ghaṭotkacavadhaparvaṇi yātriyuddhasya avasare pradīpānāṃ prakāśaviṣayaka ekaśatatriṃśattamo 'dhyāyaḥ pūrṇaḥ.
Sanjaya concludes: Thus ends the one-hundred-and-sixty-third chapter of the Drona Parva of the Śrī Mahābhārata, within the section on the slaying of Ghaṭotkaca—describing, on the occasion of the night-journey battle, the matter of the lamps’ illumination. The closing formula underscores the epic’s careful framing of warfare: even in nocturnal combat, order, visibility, and the means of discernment are treated as ethically significant conditions of battle.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
As a colophon, the verse does not teach through direct instruction; it frames the episode ethically by highlighting the conditions of night warfare—illumination and visibility—implying that even in chaos, combat is evaluated through norms of discernment, order, and accountability.
Sañjaya signals the completion of a chapter in the Drona Parva, within the Ghaṭotkaca-slaying section, specifically noting that this chapter concerned the illumination of lamps during a night battle.