Shloka 15
आदि पर्व — अध्याय १०६
Pāṇḍu’s Gifts, Forest Residence, and Vidura’s Marriage
अम्बालिकामथाभ्यागादृषिं दृष्टवा च सापि तम् । विवर्णा पाण्ड्संकाशा समपद्यत भारत,प्रसवका समय आनेपर कौसल्याने उसी अन्धे पुत्रको जन्म दिया। जनमेजय! तत्पश्चात् देवी सत्यवतीने अपनी दूसरी पुत्रवधूको समझा-बुझाकर गर्भाधानके लिये तैयार किया और इसके लिये पूर्ववत् महर्षि व्यासका आवाहन किया। फिर महर्षिने उसी (नियोगकी संयमपूर्ण) विधिसे देवी अम्बालिकाके साथ समागम किया। भारत! महर्षि व्यासको देखकर वह भी कान्तिहीन तथा पाण्डुवर्णकी-सी हो गयी
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
ambālikām athābhyāgād ṛṣiṁ dṛṣṭvā ca sāpi tam |
vivarṇā pāṇḍu-saṅkāśā samapadyata bhārata ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Then Ambālikā approached. On seeing the sage, she too became pale—her complexion drained away, turning ashen and Pāṇḍu-like, O Bhārata.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage frames procreation for dynastic continuity as a dharma-driven act (niyoga) and suggests that inner states—fear, aversion, composure—at critical moments have ethical and karmic consequences, reflected in the child’s traits and future.
Ambālikā is brought to meet the sage Vyāsa for niyoga. When she sees him, she turns pale and loses her luster, a reaction that the epic later connects to the nature and condition of the son born from this union.