Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout
पुरीषमसृजन् केचित् केचिन्मूत्रं प्रसुख्ुवुः । बन्धनानि च राजेन्द्र संच्छिद्य तुरगा द्विपा:
purīṣam asṛjan kecit kecin mūtraṁ prasukhruvuḥ | bandhanāni ca rājendra saṁcchidya turagā dvipāḥ ||
سنجے نے کہا—کچھ لوگ دہشت سے پاخانہ کر بیٹھے اور کچھ نے پیشاب کر دیا۔ اور اے راجندر! گھوڑے اور ہاتھی اپنی رسیاں توڑ کر چھوٹ گئے۔
संजय उवाच
The verse underscores how unchecked violence and terror in war degrade dignity and order: fear overwhelms the body and mind, and even disciplined war-animals break restraint—suggesting the moral and social collapse that follows adharma.
During the Sauptika episode’s night-time slaughter, panic spreads through the camp: people lose bodily control from terror, and horses and elephants snap their tethers and run loose, intensifying the chaos.