कुम्भकर्णप्रस्थानम्
Kumbhakarna’s Departure for Battle
निष्पपात च गृध्रोमालेवाऽस्यपथिगच्छतः ।प्रास्फुरन्नयनंचास्यसव्योबाहुश्चकम्पत ।।।।
niṣpapāta ca gṛdhro mālevā’sya pathi gacchataḥ |
prāsphurannayanaṃ cāsya savyo bāhuś ca kampata ||
As he advanced along the road, an eagle suddenly alighted—like a garland—upon his spear; and his eye began to twitch, while his left arm/shoulder throbbed: ominous signs on his march.
On the way as he was going an eagle alighted on his pike. His eyes twitched and left shoulder throbbed.
Dharma here is shown indirectly: the universe signals moral disorder through ominous portents, implying that adharma-driven action draws warning signs even before consequences unfold.
Kumbhakarṇa is setting out toward the battlefield; as he goes, inauspicious signs appear—an eagle on his weapon and bodily twitching—foreshadowing danger.
Not virtue but forewarning: the verse stresses the narrative idea that fate and moral causality manifest through signs, cautioning the heedless warrior.