Shloka 77

Devanagari script

ज्योतींषि प्रतिकूलानि वाता: पर्याकुलास्तथा । उल्कापाताश्षन बहवो महाभयनिदर्शका:,ग्रह उलटी गतिसे चलने लगेंगे। हवा इतनी जोरसे चलेगी कि लोग व्याकुल हो उठेंगे। महान्‌ भयकी सूचना देनेवाले उल्कापात बार-बार होते रहेंगे

Transliteration

jyotīṁṣi pratikūlāni vātāḥ paryākulās tathā | ulkāpātāś ca bahavo mahābhaya-nidarśakāḥ ||

Translation

Mārkaṇḍeya said: “The heavenly lights will turn adverse, and the winds too will rage in turmoil. Many meteoric falls will repeatedly appear—portents that signal great fear and impending calamity.”

Word by Word

ज्योतींषिlights; luminaries (omens)

प्रतिकूलानिunfavorable; adverse

वाताःwinds

पर्याकुलाःagitated; turbulent

तथाand likewise; also

उल्कापाताःmeteor-falls; falling firebrands

चand

बहवःmany

महाभयनिदर्शकाःindicating great fear; portending great terror

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya

celestial luminaries (jyotīṁṣi)

winds (vātāḥ)

meteors/fireballs (ulkāpātāḥ)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how traditional dharma-literature reads disturbances in nature as moral and political warnings: when order (dharma) is threatened, the world is described as showing ominous signs that urge vigilance, restraint, and righteous conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya is describing inauspicious portents—hostile celestial signs, turbulent winds, and repeated meteor-falls—foreshadowing a period of danger and upheaval.