Shloka 10
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 158 — Aṅgāraparṇa-saṃvāda and Gaṅgā-tīrtha Saṃghaṭṭa
Encounter at the Gaṅgā ford
कथं हि विधवानाथा बालपुत्रा विना त्वया | मिथुनं जीवयिष्यामि स्थिता साधुगते पथि,मेरा पुत्र अभी बालक है, आपके बिना मैं अनाथ विधवा सन्मार्गपर स्थित रहकर इन दोनों बच्चोंको कैसे जिलाऊँगी
kathaṃ hi vidhavānāthā bālaputrā vinā tvayā | mithunaṃ jīvayiṣyāmi sthitā sādhugate pathi |
«كيف لي حقًّا—وأنا أرملةٌ بلا سندٍ ولا حامٍ، ومعي ولدٌ صغير—أن أُبقي هذين الطفلين حيَّين من دونك؟ وإن كنتُ ثابتةً على طريق الصالحين، فبأيّ شيءٍ أعولهما؟»
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds dharma as lived responsibility: righteousness is not abstract but includes protecting and sustaining dependents. It highlights the ethical tension between personal virtue and harsh social realities faced by a widow without support.
A brāhmaṇa woman (speaking as a vulnerable widow with a young son) appeals emotionally and morally to someone she addresses as “you,” asking how she can keep two children alive without that person’s support while trying to remain on the righteous path.