Shloka 6
क्षणेन तद् वनं सर्व नि:शब्दम भवत् तदा । नाद: प्रस्रवणानां च पक्षिणां चाप्युपारमत्,एक ही क्षणमें वह सारा वन शब्दरहित हो गया। झरनों और पक्षियोंतककी आवाज बंद हो गयी
kṣaṇena tad vanaṃ sarvaṃ niḥśabdam abhavat tadā | nādaḥ prasravaṇānāṃ ca pakṣiṇāṃ cāpy upāramat ||
Vaiśampāyana said: In a single moment, that entire forest fell into utter silence. The murmur of the springs ceased, and even the calls of the birds came to a stop—an ominous stillness settling over the scene, as if nature itself were struck by sudden fear or foreboding.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how sudden silence in nature functions as a narrative sign of impending danger or awe. It suggests an ethical-literary idea common in the Mahābhārata: the world of living beings responds to extraordinary events, and attentive persons should read such signs with restraint and vigilance rather than heedlessness.
The narrator describes an abrupt transformation of the setting: the whole forest becomes soundless, with even springs and birds falling quiet. This atmospheric shift heightens suspense and signals that something momentous—often a fearful presence or critical encounter—is about to occur.