Shloka 153
Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout
अथ कम्माद्धते क्षुद्रे कर्मेंदे कृतवानसौ । द्रोणपुत्रो महात्मा स तन्मे शंसितुमहसि,जब दुर्योधन मार डाला गया, तब उस महामनस्वी द्रोणपुत्रने ऐसा नीच कर्म क्यों किया? यह सब मुझे बताओ
atha karmāddhṛte kṣudre karmendye kṛtavān asau | droṇaputro mahātmā sa tan me śaṃsitum arhasi ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “After Duryodhana had been slain, why did that high-souled son of Droṇa commit such a base deed, driven by ignoble impulse? Tell me this in full.”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral inquiry: even a renowned warrior’s status cannot justify ignoble retaliation. It invites reflection on how grief and rage can push one toward adharma, and why such actions demand explanation and ethical scrutiny.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra, hearing of the aftermath of Duryodhana’s death, asks Sañjaya why Aśvatthāman (Droṇa’s son) carried out a ‘base’ act—pointing toward the night-time slaughter that defines the Sauptika Parva.