नाद्य नन्दन्ति तूर्याणि मङ्गल्यानि जनार्दन ॥
मिश्रा दुन्दुभिनिर्घोषैः शङ्खाश् चाडम्बरैः सह ॥
वीणा वा नाद्य वाद्यन्ते शम्यातालस्वनैः सह ॥
मङ्गल्यानि च गीतानि न गायन्ति पठन्ति च ॥
स्तुतियुक्तानि रम्याणि ममानीकेषु बन्दिनः ॥
योधाश् चापि हि मां दृष्ट्वा निवर्तन्ते ह्य् अधोमुखाः ॥
कर्माणि च यथापूर्वं कृत्वा नाभिवदन्ति माम् ॥
nādya nandanti tūryāṇi maṅgalyāni janārdana ||
miśrā dundubhinirghoṣaiḥ śaṅkhāś cāḍambaraiḥ saha ||
vīṇā vā nādya vādyante śamyātālasvanaiḥ saha ||
maṅgalyāni ca gītāni na gāyanti paṭhanti ca ||
stutiyuktāni ramyāṇi mamānīkeṣu bandinaḥ ||
yodhāś cāpi hi māṃ dṛṣṭvā nivartante hy adhomukhāḥ ||
karmāṇi ca yathāpūrvaṃ kṛtvā nābhivadanti mām ||
"The auspicious trumpets do not sound joyfully today, O Janardana, mingled with the roar of kettledrums, and the conches with the drums. And the blessed songs, full of praise, delightful, are not sung nor proclaimed by the bards in my ranks. And the warriors, upon seeing me, turn aside with faces downcast, and, having done their deeds as of old, do not hail me."
f383c3691347 · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:30:04 PM UTC
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Arjuna reads disaster in the absence of the familiar: the trumpets and conches are silent, the bards are mute, the warriors, "adhomukhāḥ", "with lowered faces", turn away. Silence where triumph usually thundered speaks louder than any tidings. It is telling that the warriors' averted eyes are a sign not of indifference but of shame and grief: they dare not meet the gaze of one whose son they failed to protect. The verse teaches that the deepest sorrow is often betrayed not by weeping but by sudden muteness where rejoicing should sound.