Shloka 34
Pūru-vaṁśa, Duṣmanta–Śakuntalā, and the Rise of Mahārāja Bharata
तस्यासन् नृप वैदर्भ्य: पत्न्यस्तिस्र: सुसम्मता: । जघ्नुस्त्यागभयात् पुत्रान् नानुरूपा इतीरिते ॥ ३४ ॥
tasyāsan nṛpa vaidarbhyaḥ patnyas tisraḥ susammatāḥ jaghnus tyāga-bhayāt putrān nānurūpā itīrite
O King Parīkṣit, Mahārāja Bharata had three pleasing wives, who were daughters of the King of Vidarbha. When all three of them bore children who did not resemble the King, these wives thought that he would consider them unfaithful queens and reject them, and therefore they killed their own sons.
FAQs
It says that a king had three respected wives from Vidarbha, and out of fear of being abandoned they killed their sons, claiming the children were “not suitable.”
Śukadeva Gosvāmī is narrating this history to Parīkṣit Mahārāja.
It warns that fear of social rejection can push people into grave wrongdoing; dharma requires courage, truthfulness, and protection of dependents rather than acting from insecurity.