Shloka 29
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
प्रद्युम्नचारुदेष्णादीन् रुक्मिण्या वीक्ष्य पुत्रकान् पुत्रार्थिनी मामुपेत्य वाक्यमाह युधिछ्िर
vāsudeva uvāca | pradyumnacārudeṣṇādīn rukmiṇyā vīkṣya putrakān putrārthinī mām upetya vākyam āha yudhiṣṭhira | yudhiṣṭhira! buddhimān rukmiṇīnandana pradyumnakena dvārakām āgatena pūrvakāle śambarāsuro hataḥ; tataḥ dvādaśa varṣāṇi vyatītāni | atha rukmiṇyāḥ pradyumna-cārudeṣṇādi-putrān dṛṣṭvā putrasya kāṅkṣiṇī jāmbavatī mām upetya evam uvāca ||
Vāsudeva said: “O Yudhiṣṭhira, after seeing Pradyumna, Cārudeṣṇa, and the other sons of Rukmiṇī, Jāmbavatī—longing for a son—came to me and spoke these words. Wise Pradyumna, the beloved son of Rukmiṇī, had in former times slain the demon Śambara and returned to Dvārakā; and when twelve years had passed since then, Jāmbavatī, seeing Rukmiṇī’s sons, approached me with the desire for a child and addressed me thus.”
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a household-ethical concern: the longing for progeny and the social-religious value placed on lineage and family continuity. It also models respectful petition—Jāmbavatī approaches Vāsudeva directly, situating personal desire within dharmic family life rather than impulsive action.
Vāsudeva recounts to Yudhiṣṭhira that, years after Pradyumna returned to Dvārakā having slain the demon Śambara, Jāmbavatī saw Rukmiṇī’s sons (Pradyumna, Cārudeṣṇa, etc.). Wanting a child herself, she approached Vāsudeva and began to speak, setting up the next part of the story.