Shloka 43
Viśvāmitra-janma: Ṛcīka–Satyavatī–Gādhi and the Charu Exchange (विश्वामित्र-जन्म: ऋचीक–सत्यवती–गाधि वृत्तान्तः)
प्रतिलभ्य च सा संज्ञां शिरसा प्रणिपत्य च | उवाच भार्या भर्तरें गाधेयी भार्गवर्षभम्
pratilabhya ca sā saṃjñāṃ śirasā praṇipatya ca | uvāca bhāryā bhartāraṃ gādheyī bhārgavarṣabham | brahmavettāśreṣṭha brahmarṣe ahaṃ tava bhāryā, ataḥ prasādaṃ yāce | anugṛhāṇa māṃ tathā yathā mama garbhāt kṣatriyaḥ putro na jāyeta ||
فلما استعادت وعيها، انحنت برأسها وسجدت عند قدمي زوجها. ثم خاطبت غادهيي، ابنة غادهي، سيدها رِتشيكا—فحلَ آل بهريغو—قائلة: «يا أفضل العارفين بالبراهمان، يا براهمَرِشي، أنا زوجتك؛ لذلك أستجدي نعمتك. ارحمني رحمةً لا يُولد معها من رحمي ابنٌ من طبقة الكشاتريا.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical weight attributed to intention, lineage, and the perceived consequences of progeny, framed through humility and supplication: the wife seeks her husband-sage’s compassionate intervention, showing how personal desire is negotiated within dharma, social order (varṇa), and ascetic authority.
After recovering consciousness, Gādheyī bows to her husband Ṛcīka and petitions him for a boon: she asks that her pregnancy not result in a Kṣatriya (warrior-class) son, implying concern about the nature and disposition associated with such birth.