Shloka 13

Kaurava Court Hears of the Pāṇḍavas’ Forest Hardship (वैचित्रवीर्यवंशीयस्य राज्ञः करुणाविचारः)

Devanagari script

लोहितैश्व धनैर्युक्तां पूर्वा संध्यां शतक्रतुः । अपश्यल्लोहितोदं च भगवान्‌ वरुणालयम्‌,ऐश्वर्यशाली इन्द्रने देखा, पूर्वसंध्या (प्रभात)-का समय है, प्राचीके आकाशमें लाल रंगके घने बादल घिर आये हैं और समुद्रका जल भी लाल ही दृष्टिगोचर हो रहा है

Transliteration

lohitaish ca dhanair yuktāṃ pūrvāṃ sandhyāṃ śatakratuḥ | apaśyal lohitodaṃ ca bhagavān varuṇālayaṃ ||

Translation

Маркандейя сказал: Индра, владыка ста жертвоприношений, увидел восточную зарю, залитую густыми багряными тучами; и он увидел также величественную обитель Варуны, чьи воды казались красными.

Word by Word

लोहितैःwith red (ones)

धनैःwith masses/collections (lit. riches; here: dense masses, i.e., clouds)

युक्ताम्endowed/filled (with)

पूर्वाम्eastern/earlier

सन्ध्याम्twilight (here: dawn)

शतक्रतुःŚatakratu (Indra; 'he of a hundred rites')

अपश्यत्saw

लोहित-उदम्having red water / red-watered

चand

भगवान्the blessed/lordly one

वरुण-आलयम्Varuṇa's abode (the ocean)

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya

Indra (Śatakratu)

Varuṇa

Varuṇālaya (the ocean/sea)

pūrvā sandhyā (eastern twilight/dawn)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse uses a striking natural omen—crimson dawn and reddened waters—to suggest that moral and cosmic disturbances manifest in the world’s appearance. It frames forthcoming events as ethically weighty, implying that actions of gods and kings resonate with ṛta (cosmic order).

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya narrates that Indra observes the eastern twilight filled with red, dense cloud-masses and sees Varuṇa’s oceanic abode with waters appearing red—an atmospheric sign that sets a foreboding tone for what follows.