Shloka 18
Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout
तमाक्रम्य पदा राजन् कण्ठे चोरसि चोभयो:
tam ākramya padā rājan kaṇṭhe corasi cobhayoḥ
Sañjaya said: O King, having stepped upon him with his foot, he pressed at his throat and upon his chest on both sides—an act of ruthless domination in the night’s violence, showing how the fury of war can drive a man beyond restraint and compassion.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how unchecked rage and the momentum of war can manifest as degrading, excessive violence—an implicit warning that victory pursued through cruelty corrodes dharma and human dignity.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the attacker overpowered a victim physically by stepping on him and pinning his throat and chest, describing a close-quarters killing method typical of the brutal night actions in the Sauptika episode.