Shloka 23
Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout
कच्चिदुन्मथ्य शिविरं हत्वा सोमकपाण्डवान् | (कृता प्रतिज्ञा सफला कच्चित् संजय सा निशि ।) कहीं नीच द्वार-रक्षकोंने उन्हें रोक तो नहीं दिया? किसीने उन्हें देखा तो नहीं? कहीं ऐसा तो नहीं हुआ कि वे दोनों महारथी इस कार्यको असहाु मानकर लौट गये हों? संजय! क्या उस शिविरको मथकर सोमकों और पाण्डवोंकी हत्या करके रातमें अश्वत्थामाने अपनी प्रतिज्ञा सफल कर ली?
kaccid unmathya śibiraṃ hatvā somaka-pāṇḍavān | kṛtā pratijñā saphalā kaccit sañjaya sā niśi || evaṃ bruvāṇas taṃ vīraṃ siṃho mattam iva dvipam ||
Tinanong ni Dhṛtarāṣṭra: “Isalaysay mo, Sañjaya—sa dilim ng gabi, natupad ba ni Aśvatthāman ang kanyang panata? Nilusob ba niya at ginulo ang kampo at pinaslang ang mga Somaka at ang mga Pāṇḍava? Hindi ba siya napigilan ng hamak na mga bantay-pinto, o nakita man ng sinuman? At hindi ba umurong ang dalawang dakilang mandirigmang-karwahe, inakalang di-matiis ang gawaing iyon, at bumalik?” Sa pagsasalita niya, pinipilit ng hari ang mandirigma na parang leon na humaharap sa lasing na elepante.
घतयाट्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights moral tension in war: a vow pursued through stealth and mass killing raises anxiety about dharma. Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s questioning shows how attachment to victory can eclipse ethical restraint, even as the narrative frames the act as troubling and fearsome.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra anxiously asks Sañjaya whether Aśvatthāman succeeded at night in attacking the camp and killing the Somakas and Pāṇḍavas, whether guards stopped him or anyone saw him, and whether the two great warriors involved might have turned back in revulsion. The closing simile intensifies the scene’s emotional pressure.