Shloka 35

Devanagari script

तस्मादा ग्रहणात्‌ पाणेर्याचयन्ति परस्परम्‌ । कन्यावर: पुरा दत्तो मरुद्धिरिति न: श्रुतम्‌,जबतक कन्याका पाणिग्रहण संस्कार सम्पन्न न हो जाय तबतक कन्याको माँगना चाहिये। ऐसा कन्याओंके लिये मरुदगणोंने पहले वर दिया है, अर्थात्‌ अधिकार दिया है-- यह हमारे सुननेमें आया है। इसलिये पाणिग्रहण होनेके पहलेतक वर और कन्या आपसमें एक-दूसरेके लिये प्रार्थना कर सकते हैं

Transliteration

tasmād āgrahaṇāt pāṇer yācayanti parasparam | kanyāvaraḥ purā datto marudbhir iti naḥ śrutam ||

Translation

Bhīṣma said: Therefore, before the rite of taking the bride’s hand (pāṇigrahaṇa) is completed, the man and the maiden may seek one another—each may make a request of the other. We have heard that in ancient times the Maruts granted this ‘choice of a maiden and a suitor’ as a sanctioned right. Hence, until the hand-taking is performed, mutual solicitation between prospective bride and groom is permissible.

Word by Word

तस्मात्therefore/from that

आग्रहणात्before the taking (i.e., prior to the act of taking)

पाणेःof the hand (pāṇi; in context: of the hand-taking rite)

याचयन्तिthey ask/request

परस्परम्mutually/each other

कन्यावराḥsuitors of maidens (lit. maiden-suitors)

पुराformerly/earlier

दत्तःgiven/granted

मरुद्भिःby the Maruts

इतिthus/so (quotative)

नःof us/to us (our)

श्रुतम्heard/it is heard

Speaker

भीष्य उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Maruts

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Until the pāṇigrahaṇa rite is performed, the prospective bride and groom are not yet ritually bound; therefore, mutual seeking/asking is allowed. The passage grounds this permissibility in traditional authority attributed to the Maruts.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma is explaining norms of marriage-dharma: he clarifies when a match becomes binding and cites an old tradition—said to be granted by the Maruts—to justify that prior to the hand-taking ceremony, the parties may still request or choose one another.