Shloka 21
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय २: संजयस्य दिव्यदृष्टिप्रदानम् तथा निमित्तवर्णनम्
Granting Sañjaya Divine Sight and the Description of Omens
श्वेतलोहितपर्यन्ता: कृष्णग्रीवा: सविद्युत: । विवर्णा: परिघा: संधौ भानुमन्तमवारयन्
śvetalohitaparyantāḥ kṛṣṇagrīvāḥ savidyutaḥ | vivarṇāḥ parighāḥ sandhau bhānumantam avārayan ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : «Au crépuscule, des anneaux circulaires multicolores—bordés de blanc et de rouge, avec un centre sombre tel un cou noir—éclataient d’éclairs et semblaient encercler et barrer le Soleil resplendissant.» Ce ciel chargé de présages annonçait l’affrontement proche et la tension morale à l’approche de la guerre.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how nature is portrayed as reflecting moral and social upheaval: ominous celestial signs accompany the approach of adharma-driven conflict, urging attentiveness to dharma amid crisis.
As the Kurukṣetra war nears, Vaiśampāyana describes a striking twilight sky where lightning-laced, multicolored bands appear to encircle and dim the Sun—an inauspicious portent.