Shloka 21

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

Devanagari script

तमुवाचानवद्याड्री भर्तारं दीप्ततेजसम्‌ | अस्ति मे मानुषे लोके नरदेवात्मजा सखी

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | tam uvāca anavadyā drī bhartāraṁ dīptatejasam | asti me mānuṣe loke naradevātmajā sakhī |

Translation

তখন নিষ্কলঙ্ক অঙ্গবিশিষ্টা সেই দেবী দীপ্ততেজস্বী স্বামীকে বললেন—“মানুষলোকেতে আমার এক সখী আছে, সে এক রাজার কন্যা।”

Word by Word

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• उवाच: said/spoke
• उवाच: Kriya
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect, Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• अनवद्या: blameless, faultless (woman)
• अनवद्या: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनवद्य
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• भर्तारम्: husband
• भर्तारम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: भर्तृ
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• दीप्ततेजसम्: of blazing splendor
• दीप्ततेजसम्: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दीप्त-तेजस्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अस्ति: there is
• अस्ति: Kriya
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस्
• Form: Present, Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• मे: my
• मे: Sambandha
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: अस्मद्
• Form: Genitive, Singular, First

• मानुषे: in the human
• मानुषे: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मानुष
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative, Singular

• लोके: world
• लोके: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• नरदेवात्मजा: a king's daughter (princess)
• नरदेवात्मजा: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरदेव-आत्मज
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• सखी: friend
• सखी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: सखी
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• the blameless lady (wife)
• her radiant husband
• a king’s daughter (female friend) in the human world

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse foreshadows an ethical test: personal requests and attachments, when introduced into a situation of power and desire, can trigger actions whose consequences exceed the initial intention—highlighting the need for restraint and discernment (dharma).

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator reports that a blameless woman addresses her radiant husband and begins a request by mentioning that she has a friend in the human world who is a king’s daughter, preparing the next development of the episode.