Shloka 93
अभ्यवर्षच्च पर्जन्य: प्राकम्पत च मेदिनी । पतन् स ददृशे चापि दक्षिणेन दिवाकरम्
abhyavarṣac ca parjanyaḥ prākampata ca medinī | patan sa dadṛśe cāpi dakṣiṇena divākaram |
Sañjaya said: “The rain-cloud poured down, and the earth trembled. As he was falling, he saw the Sun to the south—an omen that the season was not considered auspicious for death. Even amid war’s violence, time, weather, and cosmic signs were read as bearing ethical and ritual weight upon a warrior’s end.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the Mahābhārata’s worldview in which human action—especially death in battle—is interpreted alongside cosmic signs. Weather, earthquakes, and the Sun’s course are treated as meaningful indicators, reminding readers that ethical and ritual notions of a ‘proper time’ (kāla) were integral to how a warrior’s fate was understood.
Sañjaya reports ominous battlefield phenomena: heavy rain and the trembling of the earth. At the same time, as a warrior is falling, he notices the Sun positioned to the south, interpreted as indicating that the time is not favorable for death—an observation that intensifies the tragic and portentous atmosphere of the scene.