Shloka 7
राजन! ये तथा और भी बहुत-से भयसूचक उत्पात दिखायी देने लगे, जो हृदयको उद्विग्न कर देनेवाले थे ।। कस्यचित् त्वथ कालस्य कुरुराजो युधिष्ठिर: । शुश्राव वृष्णिचक्रस्य मौसले कदनं कृतम्,इसके थोड़े ही दिनों बाद कुरुराज युधिष्ठिरने यह समाचार सुना कि मूसलको निमित्त बनाकर आपसमें महान् युद्ध हुआ है; जिसमें समस्त वृष्णिवंशियोंका संहार हो गया। केवल भगवान् श्रीकृष्ण और बलरामजी ही उस विनाशसे बचे हुए हैं। यह सब सुनकर पाण्डुनन्दन युधिष्ठिने अपने समस्त भाइयोंको बुलाया और पूछा--'अब हमें क्या करना चाहिये?
rājan! ye tathā anye'pi bahavaḥ bhaya-sūcakā utpātāḥ dṛśyante sma, ye hṛdayam udvijayanti sma. kasyacit tv atha kālasya kuru-rājo yudhiṣṭhiraḥ śuśrāva vṛṣṇi-cakrasya mausale kadanaṃ kṛtam.
O King, many other ominous portents also began to appear—fear-inducing signs that deeply unsettled the heart. Then, after some time, King Yudhiṣṭhira of the Kurus heard that among the Vṛṣṇis a terrible slaughter had occurred, brought about by the mace (mausala)—a ruinous internecine conflict that destroyed their entire circle.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even mighty lineages are subject to decline when time (kāla) ripens and inner discord arises; ominous signs warn of moral and cosmic turning-points, urging rulers to respond with steadiness, discernment, and dharmic responsibility rather than denial.
Vaiśampāyana reports that frightening portents appear, and soon Yudhiṣṭhira hears news that the Vṛṣṇis have been destroyed in a catastrophic internecine slaughter, with the mace (mausala) serving as the immediate instrument or cause of that devastation.