Shloka 79
अध्याय ७४: अक्रोध–क्षमा–निवासनीति
Chapter 74: Non-anger, Forbearance, and the Ethics of Residence
अतिकायश्ष ते पुत्रो बालोडइतिबलवानयम् | कथमल्पेन कालेन शालस्तम्भ इवोद्गत:,तुम्हारे इस पुत्रका शरीर बहुत बड़ा है। बाल्यावस्थामें ही यह अत्यन्त बलवान् जान पड़ता है। इतने थोड़े समयमें यह साखूके खंभे-जैसा लम्बा कैसे हो गया?
atikāyaś ca te putro bālo ’pi atibalavān ayam | katham alpena kālena śālastambha ivodgataḥ ||
Your son is of a remarkably large frame. Though still only a child, he appears extraordinarily strong. How, in so short a time, has he grown up so tall—like a śāla-wood pillar?
दुष्यन्त उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the auspicious signs of future greatness: extraordinary strength and rapid growth in a child are read as indicators of royal destiny and responsibility, pointing toward the ethical ideal that power should be recognized early and guided toward rightful kingship.
Duṣyanta, encountering the child (Bharata) connected to Śakuntalā, expresses astonishment at the boy’s immense physique and strength despite his young age, using the image of a śāla-wood pillar to describe his sudden, towering growth.