Srimad Bhagavatam — Navama Skandha, Shloka 9
Pūru-vaṁśa, Duṣmanta–Śakuntalā, and the Rise of Mahārāja Bharata
दुष्मन्तो मृगयां यात: कण्वाश्रमपदं गत: । तत्रासीनां स्वप्रभया मण्डयन्तीं रमामिव ॥ ८ ॥ विलोक्य सद्यो मुमुहे देवमायामिव स्त्रियम् । बभाषे तां वरारोहां भटै: कतिपयैर्वृत: ॥ ९ ॥
duṣmanto mṛgayāṁ yātaḥ kaṇvāśrama-padaṁ gataḥ tatrāsīnāṁ sva-prabhayā maṇḍayantīṁ ramām iva
Einst ging König Duṣmanta im Wald auf die Jagd und, sehr ermattet, näherte er sich der Wohnstätte des Weisen Kaṇva. Dort erblickte er eine Frau von höchster Schönheit, der Göttin Lakṣmī gleich, die sitzend mit ihrem eigenen Glanz den ganzen Āśrama schmückte und erhellte. Vom Anblick natürlich angezogen, trat der König mit einigen Soldaten zu ihr und sprach sie an.
FAQs
This verse shows Duṣmanta becoming instantly bewildered, comparing the experience to being influenced by the Lord’s divine māyā—highlighting how powerful attraction can be and how it operates under higher arrangement.
As a king traveling on a hunt, Duṣmanta moved with attendants; upon seeing Śakuntalā at Kaṇva’s hermitage, he addressed her in that setting, marking the narrative beginning of their encounter.
It cautions that sudden fascination can cloud judgment; one should pause, reflect, and act with dharma and self-control rather than being driven by immediate infatuation.