Shloka 9
कच-देवयानी संवादः
Kaca–Devayānī Dialogue and the Curse on Vidyā
रममाणौ यथाकामं यथैकदिवसं तथा । (कामक्रोधावजितवान मुनिर्नित्यं क्षमान्वित: । चिरार्जितस्य तपस: क्षयं स कृतवानृषि: ।। तपस: संक्षयादेव मुनिर्मोहं समाविशत् | कामरागाभिभूतस्य मुने: पार्श्व जगाम सा ।।) जनयामास स मुनिर्मेनकायां शकुन्तलाम्
ramamāṇau yathākāmaṃ yathaikadivasaṃ tathā | (kāmakrodhāvajitavān munir nityaṃ kṣamānvitaḥ | cirārjitasya tapasaḥ kṣayaṃ sa kṛtavān ṛṣiḥ || tapasaḥ saṃkṣayād eva munir mohaṃ samāviśat | kāmarāgābhibhūtasya muneḥ pārśvaṃ jagāma sā ||) janayāmāsa sa munir menakāyāṃ śakuntalām ||
Kaṇva sprach: Während sie nach Herzenslust miteinander spielten, verging Tag um Tag, als wäre es nur ein einziger Tag. Obgleich der Weise seit langem Begierde und Zorn bezwungen hatte und stets von Nachsicht erfüllt war, ließ er die über lange Zeit angesammelte Kraft seiner Askese (tapas) schwinden. Aus der Minderung des tapas drang Verblendung in den Asketen; und als der Muni von Leidenschaft und Anhaftung überwältigt war, trat sie (Menakā) an seine Seite. So zeugte jener Weise mit Menakā Śakuntalā.
कण्व उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights an ethical warning: even long-cultivated ascetic merit (tapas) can diminish when vigilance and self-restraint lapse. As tapas wanes, moha (delusion) can arise, making one vulnerable to kāma-rāga (passion and attachment). The narrative frames self-control and sustained discipline as essential to preserving spiritual power and clarity.
Kaṇva narrates that the sage and Menakā spent time together in mutual enjoyment; this indulgence caused the sage’s accumulated austerity to decline. With the decline of tapas, delusion and passion overtook him, and Menakā approached him. From their union, Śakuntalā was born.