Shloka 112
अध्याय ७४: अक्रोध–क्षमा–निवासनीति
Chapter 74: Non-anger, Forbearance, and the Ethics of Residence
त्वं चास्य धाता गर्भस्य सत्यमाह शकुन्तला । जाया जनयते पुत्रमात्मनोड्ुं द्विधा कृतम्
tvaṃ cāsya dhātā garbhasya satyam āha śakuntalā | jāyā janayate putram ātmano 'ṅgaṃ dvidhā kṛtam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “You are indeed the begetter of this child in the womb—Śakuntalā has spoken the truth. A lawful wife gives birth to a son who is, as it were, the husband’s own self made into two.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse affirms satya (truth) and the dharmic legitimacy of lineage: within lawful marriage, the child is regarded as the father’s own self continued, so acknowledging paternity and protecting the offspring is an ethical duty.
Vaiśampāyana underscores that Śakuntalā’s claim is true: the man addressed is the father of the child she carries, and the statement frames the son as the husband’s own embodied continuation, strengthening her position in the dispute over recognition.