19.  Nilakantha explains this in a long note the substance of which is appended below.  Kings are divided into three classes, viz., owners of elephants (Gajapati), owners of horses (Aswapati), and owners of men (Narapati).  If an evil-omened planet (papa-graha) sheds its influence upon any of the nine constellations beginning with Aswini, it forebodes danger to Aswapatis; if on any of the nine beginning with Magha, it forebodes danger to Gajapatis; and if on any of the nine beginning with Mula, it forebodes danger to Narapatis.  What Vyasa says here, therefore, is that one or another papa-graha has shed its influence upon one another of each of the three classes of constellations, thus foreboding danger to all classes of kings.

20.  Vide note ante.

21.  Aparvani, i.e., not on Parva days or days of full-moon and new-moon as ordinarily coming.  The Bombay edition, after aparvani, reads grahenau tau.  A better reading unquestionably grastavetau, as many Bengal texts have.

22.  Pratisrotas; strict grammar would require pratisrotasas; the meaning is that those that flowed east to west now flow west to east, &c.  For kurddanti some texts have narddanti which is certainly better.  Kurddanti means play or sport; wells playing like bulls would be unmeaning, unless the sport is accompanied by bellowing.

23.  The Burdwan Pundits reads suskasani for sakrasani.  The latter, however, is the true reading.

24.  The original is very obscure.  Uluka is explained by Nilakantha as a brand (used for want of lambs).  The line, however, is elliptical.  The Burdwan Pundits introduce an entirely new line.

25.  Mahabhuta is swelling greatly.

26.  Parena is explained by Nilakantha as atisayena.

27.  Some of the Bengal texts read anugraham (making the initial a silent after maharshe, in the vocative case).  There can be no doubt however, that this is incorrect.  The true reading is nadharmam which I have adopted.  The Bombay text reads na cha dharmam.  The introduction of the article cha needlessly makes the line incorrect as to metre.

28.  The second line of the 67th sloka is very obscure.  I have followed Nilakantha in translating it thus.  The sense seems to be, that when crows hover behind an army, that is an auspicious sign; while it is an inauspicious sign if they are seen ahead.  I am not sure that Nilakantha is right in taking the pronoun ye as referring to even crows.

29.  Such as “don’t fight, for you will be dead men soon.” &c.

30.  Nilakantha explains these five species thus:  trees such as the peepul; gulma (shrub), as kusa, kasa, &c., growing from a clump underneath; creepers, such as all plants growing upon the soil but requiring some support to twine round; Valli, those that creep on the earth and live for a year only, such, as the gourd, the pumpkin, etc., and lastly, Trina, such as grass and all plants that are stemless, having only their barks and leaves.