Shloka 346
Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout
अपश्यच्छयने सुप्तमुत्तमौजसमन्तिके । इस प्रकार धृष्टद्युम्म और उसके सेवकोंका वध करके अभश्व॒त्थामाने निकटके ही खेमेमें पलंगपर सोये हुए उत्तमौजाको देखा
apaśyac chayane suptam uttamaujasaṃ antike |
サンジャヤは語った。アシュヴァッターマはドリシュタデュムナとその従者たちを殺したのち、近くの天幕で、寝台に横たわり眠るウッタマウジャを見つけた。この場面は夜襲における道義の崩壊を示す。戦士は正面の戦いで相まみえるのではなく、眠りの中で無防備に見いだされ、勝利はダルマにかなう決闘ではなく、殺戮へと変わってしまう。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical inversion of warfare when violence targets the unarmed and sleeping. It frames the night-raid as a departure from kṣatriya-dharma, where combat is ideally between alert, armed opponents, making the act morally weighty even if militarily effective.
After killing Dhṛṣṭadyumna and others during the nocturnal assault, Aśvatthāmā moves through the camp and notices Uttamaujā asleep on a bed in a nearby tent, setting up the next act of the raid.