Shloka 25

नियोगप्रसङ्गः — The Niyoga Episode: Births of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Pāṇḍu, and Vidura

Devanagari script

मानुषेषु भवत्वेका जरारोगविवर्जिता । एतन्मम महाभाग कर्तुमर्हस्यनिन्दित

Transliteration

mānuṣeṣu bhavatvekā jarārogavivarjitā | etanmama mahābhāga kartumarhasyanindita ||

Translation

قال فايشَمبايانا: «لتكن هي، بين البشر، الوحيدةَ التي لا تمسّها الشيخوخة ولا المرض. أيها النبيل، يا من لا يُعاب، ينبغي لك أن تُنجز لي هذه الأمنية».

Word by Word

• {'mānuṣeṣu': 'among humans

• in the human world (locative plural of mānuṣa)', 'bhavatu': 'let there be

• may it happen (imperative of √bhū)', 'ekā': 'alone

• the only one (feminine singular)', 'jarā': 'old age

• senescence', 'roga': 'disease

• illness', 'vivarjitā': 'devoid of

• free from (past participle, feminine singular)', 'etat': 'this (pronoun)', 'mama': 'of me

• my', 'mahābhāga': 'highly fortunate

• noble one (vocative)', 'kartum': 'to do

• to accomplish (infinitive)', 'arhasi': 'you are worthy/fit

• you ought', 'anindita': 'blameless

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• a female friend/companion (sakhī, implied)
• human world (mānuṣa-loka, implied)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical impulse to seek well-being for another—requesting a boon not for power or dominance, but for freedom from suffering (old age and disease), and appealing to the addressee’s blamelessness and capacity to fulfill a righteous wish.

What is happening in the narrative?

Within Vaiśampāyana’s narration, a request is voiced that a particular woman should uniquely remain free from aging and illness among humans, and the addressed noble, blameless figure is urged to bring about (grant/arrange) that desired outcome.