Shloka 73
उत्पातवर्णनम् (Utpāta-varṇanam) — Catalogue of Portents
अनुगा वायवो वान्ति तथाभ्राणि वयांसि च | अनुप्लवन्ति मेघाश्न तथैवेन्द्रधनूंषि च
anugā vāyavo vānti tathābhrāṇi vayāṃsi ca | anuplavanti meghāś ca tathaivendradhanuṃṣi ca, rājan |
Vyāsa berkata: “Wahai Raja, bila angin bertiup memihak seseorang, dan awan serta burung pun bergerak searah dengannya; bila awan seakan mengikuti dari belakang laksana kanopi peneduh, dan pelangi pun tampak di penjuru yang mujur—itulah pertanda baik kemenangan bagi para pahlawan yang ditakdirkan unggul. Namun bagi mereka yang telah dekat pada maut, pertanda yang tampak justru kebalikannya, sebagai alamat celaka.”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames nature’s alignment (wind, clouds, birds, rainbow) as symbolic confirmation of one’s destined outcome: auspicious concordant signs attend those headed for victory, while contrary, unsettling signs attend those approaching death—highlighting the epic’s theme that moral and karmic trajectories manifest as perceivable portents.
Vyāsa addresses the king and interprets battlefield-era portents: he lists favourable natural phenomena as signs that certain warriors will be victorious, and contrasts them with the reversed, ominous signs that appear to those whose end is near.