Shloka 66
कृष्णोपदेशः, अर्जुनस्य क्षमा-याचनम्, कर्णवध-अनुज्ञा
Krishna’s Counsel, Arjuna’s Apology, and Authorization for Karṇa’s Slaying
नैव सूर्यप्रभा राजन् न दिश: प्रदिशस्तथा
naiva sūryaprabhā rājan na diśaḥ pradiśas tathā
Sañjaya said: “O King, neither did the radiance of the sun appear, nor did the directions and intermediate quarters present themselves as before.” The line conveys a battlefield moment of ominous obscurity—an ethical and psychological darkness mirroring the collapse of clarity and order amid escalating violence.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
When violence and adharma intensify, clarity—symbolized by sunlight and stable directions—seems to vanish; the verse frames moral and psychological disorientation as a cosmic sign of disorder.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the battlefield is engulfed in an unnatural gloom: sunlight is absent and even the sense of direction is lost, indicating a fearful, ominous turn in the fighting.