Shloka 22

पराशरस्य राक्षससत्रनिवृत्तिः | Paraśara’s Rakṣasa-Satra and Its Cessation

Devanagari script

न चाहमीशा देहस्य तस्मान्नपतिसत्तम । समीप॑ नोपगच्छामि न स्वतन्त्रा हि योषित:,नृपश्रेष्ठ! मैं अपने शरीरकी स्वामिनी नहीं हूँ, इसलिये आपके समीप नहीं आ सकती; कारण कि स्त्रियाँ कभी स्वतन्त्र नहीं होती। आपका कुल सम्पूर्ण लोकोंमें विख्यात है। आप-जैसे भक्तवत्सल नरेशको कौन कन्या अपना पति बनानेकी इच्छा नहीं करेगी?

Transliteration

na cāham īśā dehasya tasmān napatisaत्तama | samīpaṁ nopagacchāmi na svatantrā hi yoṣitaḥ ||

Translation

قال الغندرفا: «لستُ سيّدة جسدي؛ لذلك، يا أفضل الملوك، لا أستطيع أن أدنو منك. فالنساء لسن مستقلات. إن سلالتك مشهورة في العوالم كلها؛ وأيُّ عذراء لا تتمنى أن تختار ملكًا مثلك—محبًّا لمن يلتمسون الملجأ—زوجًا لها؟»

Word by Word

• {'na': 'not', 'ca': 'and', 'aham': 'I', 'īśā': 'mistress, one with authority', 'dehasya': 'of the body', 'tasmāt': 'therefore, for that reason', 'nṛpati-sattama / napatisaत्तama': 'O best of kings', 'samīpam': 'near, proximity', 'na upagacchāmi': 'I do not approach', 'svatantrā': 'independent, self-governing', 'hi': 'indeed, for', 'yoṣitaḥ': 'women (feminine beings)', 'kula': 'lineage, family', 'vikhyāta': 'famed, renowned', 'lokeṣu': 'in the worlds', 'bhakta-vatsala': 'affectionate to devotees/suppliants

• protector of those devoted', 'kanyā': 'maiden, unmarried girl', 'pati': 'husband', 'icchā': 'desire, wish'}

Speaker

गन्धर्व उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Gandharva (speaker)
• nṛpa / nṛpaśreṣṭha (a king addressed)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse reflects a dharma-based social ethic in which a woman’s bodily agency is portrayed as constrained by guardianship and social order; it also underscores royal reputation and the ideal of a king as “bhakta-vatsala,” worthy of being sought as a husband.

What is happening in the narrative?

A Gandharva addresses a king and refuses to approach him, stating she is not autonomous over her body and that women are not independent; she simultaneously acknowledges the king’s famed lineage and his desirability as a husband due to his protective, devotee-friendly character.