Shloka 30
Rukmī’s Offer of Aid and Arjuna’s Refusal (रुक्मिप्रस्तावः—अर्जुनप्रत्याख्यानम्)
वाचश्नाप्यशरीरिण्यो दिवश्नोल्का: प्रपेदिरे । शिवाश्व भयवेदिन्यो नेदुर्दीप्ततरा भूशम्,अशुभ आकाशवाणी सुनायी देने लगी, आकाशसे उल्काएँ गिरने लगीं, भयकी सूचना देनेवाली सियारिनियाँ जोर-जोरसे अमंगलजनक शब्द करने लगीं
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
vācaś cāpy aśarīriṇyo divaś colkāḥ prapedire |
śivāś ca bhayavedinyo nedur dīptatarā bhṛśam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Disembodied voices were heard, and blazing meteors fell from the sky. Jackals—sensing danger—howled loudly with an ominous intensity.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
When collective conduct turns away from dharma, the epic frames the world itself as responding through ominous signs—reminding rulers and communities that ethical collapse brings unavoidable consequences.
A sequence of inauspicious portents appears: disembodied voices are heard, meteors fall from the sky, and jackals howl loudly—signals that a grave crisis and destructive conflict are imminent.