Shloka 543
अध्याय १ — न्यग्रोधवनोपवेशनम् तथा द्रौणिनिश्चयः
Night at the Banyan and Drauṇi’s Resolve
भिन्नयोधं बल॑ यच्च द्विधा युक्त च यद् भवेत् “जो सेना आधी रातके समय नींदमें अचेत पड़ी हो
bhinnayodhaṃ balaṃ yac ca dvidhā yuktaṃ ca yad bhavet
สัญชัยกล่าวว่า— “แม้กองทัพจะนอนหลับไร้สติในยามเที่ยงคืน แม้ผู้นำจะถูกทำลาย แม้ความแตกแยกจะเกิดในหมู่นักรบ และแม้จะตกอยู่ในความสับสนลังเล—ก็ยังพึงเข้าตีศัตรูโดยแน่นอน.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse conveys a ruthless tactical maxim: when the enemy is weakened—leaderless, divided, confused, or even asleep—one should exploit the advantage and attack. In the Sauptika context, it highlights the tension between victory-oriented strategy and the broader dharmic ideal of fair combat.
In Sauptika Parva, the aftermath of the great war leads into a night-time assault. Sañjaya’s report frames the logic used to justify striking an enemy force that is vulnerable—disorganized and even asleep—setting the ethical atmosphere for the events that follow.