Shloka 4

Ādi-parva Adhyāya 116 — Pāṇḍu’s Transgression of the Curse and Mādrī’s Final Charge

Devanagari script

यदि भागशतं पेशी कृता तेन महर्षिणा । न प्रजास्यति चेद्‌ भूय: सौबलेयी कथंचन,यदि महर्षिने उक्त मांसपिण्डके सौ भाग किये और यदि सुबलपुत्री गान्धारीने किसी प्रकार फिर गर्भ धारण या प्रसव नहीं किया, तो उस दु:शला नामवाली कनन्‍्याका जन्म किस प्रकार हुआ? ब्रह्मर्ष! यह सब यथार्थरूपसे मुझे बताइये। मुझे इस विषयमें कौतूहल हो रहा है

Transliteration

Janamejaya uvāca | yadi bhāgaśataṁ peśī kṛtā tena maharṣiṇā | na prajāsyati ced bhūyaḥ saubaleyī kathaṁcana ||

Translation

Janamejaya said: “If that great sage divided the lump of flesh into a hundred portions, and if Gandhārī, the daughter of Subala, was in no way to conceive or give birth again, then how did the girl named Duḥśalā come to be born? O brahmarṣi, tell me all this exactly as it happened; my curiosity about this matter has been aroused.”

Word by Word

• {'yadi': 'if', 'bhāga-śatam': 'a hundred portions

• one hundred shares', 'peśī': 'a piece/portion of flesh

• fleshy mass', 'kṛtā': 'made

• prepared', 'tena': 'by him

• by that (person)', 'maharṣiṇā': 'by the great seer (instrumental singular)', 'na': 'not', 'prajāsyati': 'will give birth

• will produce offspring', 'cet': 'if (indeed)

• in case', 'bhūyaḥ': 'again

• once more', 'saubaleyī': 'the daughter of Subala

• Gandhārī', 'kathaṁcana': 'in any way

Speaker

जनमेजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Janamejaya
• Maharṣi (the sage; contextually Vyāsa)
• Saubaleyī (Gandhārī)
• Subala
• Duḥśalā