Shloka 97

Sauptika Parva, Adhyaya 8 — Dhṛṣṭadyumna-vadha and the Camp’s Nocturnal Rout

Devanagari script

तस्मिंस्तमसि संजाते प्रमूढा: सर्वतो जना:

Transliteration

tasmiṁs tamasi saṁjāte pramūḍhāḥ sarvato janāḥ

Translation

三阇耶说道：当那黑暗骤然升起，四方之人尽皆迷乱，感官与判断被突如其来的昏冥所压倒——此乃夜间暴行之后，恐惧与道德迷失如何蔓延的写照。

Word by Word

• तस्मिन्: in that
• तस्मिन्: Adhikarana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative, Singular

• तमसि: in darkness
• तमसि: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: तमस्
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• संजाते: when (it) had arisen/occurred
• संजाते: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-√जन्
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• प्रमूढाः: bewildered, confused
• प्रमूढाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्र-√मुह्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सर्वतः: on all sides, everywhere
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सर्वतः

• जनाः: people
• जनाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: जन
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• janāḥ (people)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how darkness—both literal and symbolic—breeds collective confusion. In the ethical frame of the Sauptika episode, it suggests that actions done under the cover of night and rage tend to spread fear, impair discernment, and destabilize dharmic order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the onset of darkness and its immediate effect: people everywhere become disoriented. This sets the atmosphere for the Sauptika Parva’s night events, where surprise, panic, and moral chaos dominate the scene.