Shloka 13

Devanagari script

अद्य स्वप्स्यन्ति पञ्चाला विमुक्तकवचा विभो । विश्वस्ता रजनीं सर्वे प्रेता इव विचेतस:,प्रभो! आज रातमें समस्त पांचाल कवच उतारकर निश्रिन्त हो मुर्दोके समान अचेत सो रहे होंगे। उस अवस्थामें जो क्रूर मनुष्य उनके साथ द्रोह करेगा, वह निश्चय ही नौकारहित अगाध एवं विशाल नरकके समुद्रमें डूब जायगा

Transliteration

adya svapsyanti pañcālā vimuktakavacā vibho | viśvastā rajanīṁ sarve pretā iva vicetasaḥ ||

Translation

Kṛpa said: “Tonight the Pāñcālas will sleep, O mighty one, having taken off their armor. Trusting and unguarded through the whole night, they will lie senseless like the dead. In such a condition, whoever—being cruel—commits treachery against them will surely sink into a vast, unfathomable hell-ocean, without any boat to save him.”

Word by Word

अद्यtoday

स्वप्स्यन्तिwill sleep

पञ्चालाःthe Panchalas

विमुक्तकवचाःhaving cast off their armor

विभोO mighty one

विश्वस्ताःtrusting, off-guard

रजनीम्the night

सर्वेall

प्रेताःdead men, corpses

इवlike, as if

विचेतसःunconscious, senseless

Speaker

कृप उवाच

Characters & Entities

Kṛpa

Pāñcālas

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames attacking trusting, unarmored sleepers as droha (treacherous betrayal) and therefore adharma, warning of severe moral and karmic consequence—symbolized as sinking into a vast hell without any means of rescue.

What is happening in the narrative?

On the eve of the Sauptika episode, Kṛpa observes that the Pāñcālas will be asleep and unarmored, and he cautions that harming them in that helpless state would be a cruel act of treachery with grave consequences.