Shloka 15

Ādi-parva, Adhyāya 73: Devayānī–Śarmiṣṭhā Dispute, Confinement in the Well, and Yayāti’s Rescue

Devanagari script

शकुन्तलोवाच यदि धर्मपथस्त्वेष यदि चात्मा प्रभुर्मम । प्रदाने पौरवश्रेष्ठ शृणु मे समयं प्रभो,शकुन्तलाने कहा--पौरवश्रेष्ठ! यदि यह गान्धर्व विवाह धर्मका मार्ग है, यदि आत्मा स्वयं ही अपना दान करनेमें समर्थ है तो इसके लिये मैं तैयार हूँ; किंतु प्रभो! मेरी एक शर्त है, उसे सुन लीजिये

Transliteration

Śakuntalovāca yadi dharmapathas tveṣa yadi cātmā prabhur mama | pradāne Pauravaśreṣṭha śṛṇu me samayaṁ prabho ||

Translation

Śakuntalā sprach: „O Bester der Pauravas, wenn dies wahrhaft ein rechter Weg ist—wenn das eigene Selbst einer Frau die Vollmacht hat, sich in die Ehe zu geben—dann bin ich bereit. Doch, mein Herr, höre die Bedingung, die ich setze.“

Word by Word

• {'yadi': 'if', 'dharma-pathaḥ': 'path of dharma

• righteous course', 'tv eṣaḥ (tveṣa)': 'this indeed (emphatic ‘this’)', 'ātmā': 'self

• one’s own person', 'prabhuḥ': 'master

• having authority/competence', 'mama': 'of me

• my', 'pradāne': 'in giving (in marriage)

• in the act of bestowal', 'Paurava-śreṣṭha': 'best among the Pauravas (address to Duṣyanta)', 'śṛṇu': 'hear

• listen', 'me': 'my

• of me', 'samayam': 'agreement

• compact', 'prabho': 'O lord'}

Speaker

दुष्यन्त उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Śakuntalā
• Paurava (dynasty)
• Duṣyanta (implied by address)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames marriage as an ethical act governed by dharma and personal agency: Śakuntalā accepts the union if it is truly righteous and if her own self has authority in consenting, but she insists on a clear stipulation—highlighting consent and accountability within dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śakuntalā–Duṣyanta episode, Śakuntalā responds to the king’s proposal by agreeing in principle to a Gandharva-style union, yet she asks him to listen to her ‘samaya’—a condition that will define the terms of their marriage.