Shloka 39
Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ
King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt
चकार पत्नीं कन्यां तु तथा तां गिरिकां नृपः । वसो: पत्नी तु गिरिका कामकालं न्यवेदयत्,और जो कन्या थी उसे राजाने अपनी पत्नी बना लिया। उसका नाम था गिरिका। बुद्धिमानोंमें श्रेष्ठ जनममेजय! एक दिन ऋतुकालको प्राप्त हो स्नानके पश्चात् शुद्ध हुई वसुपत्नी गिरिकाने पुत्र उत्पन्न होने योग्य समयमें राजासे समागमकी इच्छा प्रकट की। उसी दिन पितरोंने राजाओंमें श्रेष्ठ वसुपर प्रसन्न हो उन्हें आज्ञा दी--'तुम हिंसक पशुओंका वध करो।' तब राजा पितरोंकी आज्ञाका उल्लंघन न करके कामनावश साक्षात् दूसरी लक्ष्मीके समान अत्यन्त रूप और सौन्दर्यके वैभवसे सम्पन्न गिरिकाका ही चिन्तन करते हुए हिंसक पशुओंको मारनेके लिये वनमें गये
cakāra patnīṃ kanyāṃ tu tathā tāṃ girikāṃ nṛpaḥ | vasoḥ patnī tu girikā kāmakālaṃ nyavedayat |
Vaiśampāyana said: The king took that maiden as his wife; she was named Girikā. In due season, after bathing and becoming ritually pure, Girikā—the wife of Vasu—made known to the king her desire for union at the proper time for begetting a son. But on that very day the Pitṛs, pleased with Vasu, commanded him: “Slay the fierce beasts.” Not wishing to transgress the command of the ancestors, the king went to the forest to kill the dangerous animals—yet, driven by desire, his mind remained fixed on Girikā, radiant in beauty like a second Lakṣmī.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension a ruler faces when personal desire coincides with an overriding duty: Vasu honors the Pitṛs’ command without neglecting the narrative’s emphasis on proper season and purity for marital union, showing how dharma can require restraint and prioritization.
Vasu marries the maiden Girikā. When she expresses desire for union at the proper time for conception, the Pitṛs simultaneously order Vasu to go kill dangerous animals. He goes to the forest to obey them, though his mind remains absorbed in Girikā’s beauty.