Shloka 19
Subhadrā-vilāpaḥ — Subhadrā’s Lament for Abhimanyu
Droṇa-parva 55
तस्य प्रसन्ना विप्रेन्द्राः: कदाचित् पुत्रमीप्सव:,एक दिन राजापर प्रसन्न होकर उन्हें पुत्र देनेकी इच्छावाले सभी श्रेष्ठ ब्राह्मण, जो तपस्या और स्वाध्यायमें संलग्न रहनेवाले तथा वेद-वेदांगोंके पारंगत विद्वान् थे, एक साथ नारदजीसे बोले--'देवर्षी). आप इन राजा सृंजयको अभीष्ट पुत्र प्रदान कीजिये”
tasya prasannā viprendrāḥ kadācit putram īpsavaḥ | ekadā rājānaṃ prati prasannāḥ sarve śreṣṭhā brāhmaṇāḥ tapasā svādhyāyena ca saṃyuktā vedavedāṅgapāraga-vidvāṃsaḥ ekatra nāradaṃ ūcuḥ— “devarṣe, tvaṃ rājñe sṛñjayāya abhīṣṭaṃ putraṃ prayaccha” iti |
Vyasa said: Once, a group of eminent Brahmins—pleased and wishing to secure a son for the king—approached Narada together. Steadfast in austerity and Vedic study, and fully versed in the Vedas and their auxiliary sciences, they addressed the divine seer: “O Devarshi, grant King Sṛñjaya the son he desires.” The episode frames learned counsel and spiritual merit as instruments for fulfilling a ruler’s legitimate longing for progeny, through righteous means rather than coercion.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Legitimate human aims—such as a king’s desire for an heir—are to be pursued through dharmic channels: learned counsel, spiritual discipline, and the blessings of realized sages, rather than through unrighteous means.
A group of highly learned, austere Brahmins, pleased and intent on securing an heir for King Sṛñjaya, collectively approach Narada and request that he bestow the king’s desired son.