Shloka 38
अध्याय २९: कर्णस्य शल्यं प्रति शापस्मरणं च युद्धनिश्चयः | Chapter 29: Karṇa recalls curses to Śalya and declares resolve for battle
तमसा च महाराज रजसा च विशेषत: । न किंचित् प्रत्यपश्याम शुभं वा यदि वाशुभम्
tamasā ca mahārāja rajasā ca viśeṣataḥ | na kiñcit pratyapaśyāma śubhaṃ vā yadi vāśubham ||
Sañjaya dit : «Ô grand roi, enveloppés par les ténèbres—et surtout par la poussière en tumulte—nous ne pouvions rien discerner, ni de favorable ni de funeste.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
When tamas (obscuring darkness) and rajas (agitating turbulence) dominate, discernment collapses: one cannot distinguish what is wholesome or harmful. Ethically, it warns that passion and delusion in conflict cloud judgment and make right action difficult.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the battlefield has become so dark and dust-choked—symbolically and literally—that observers cannot make out events or even judge whether the signs are auspicious or ominous.