Shloka 3
शिखराणि व्यशीर्यन्त गिरीणां तत्र भारत | अपसव्यं मृगाश्चैव पाण्डुसेनां प्रचक्रिरे
śikharāṇi vyaśīryanta girīṇāṁ tatra bhārata | apasavyaṁ mṛgāś caiva pāṇḍusenāṁ pracakrire ||
Sañjaya dit : «Ô Bhārata ! Là même, les cimes des montagnes semblaient se disloquer et s’effondrer. Et les bêtes, se mouvant de façon néfaste vers la gauche, se mirent à tourner autour de l’armée des Pāṇḍava — présages jetant une ombre sinistre sur la violence de la guerre qui se déchaînait.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how adharma-driven violence is often framed in the epic through ominous portents: nature and animal behavior mirror moral disorder, warning that war’s momentum carries suffering and grave consequences.
Sañjaya reports fearful signs on the battlefield: mountain summits seem to break apart, and animals circle the Pāṇḍava forces moving ‘to the left’ (apasavya), a traditional indicator of inauspiciousness.