Shloka 21
उद्योगपर्व अध्याय १३३ — संजये मातृउपदेशः
Udyoga Parva Adhyaya 133 — A Mother’s Counsel to Saṃjaya
बेटा! अपार समुद्रमें डूबते हुए हमलोगोंको तू पार लगानेवाला हो। नौकाविहीन अगाध जलराशि (महान् संकट)-में तू हमारे लिये नौका हो जा। हमारे लिये कोई स्थान नहीं रह गया है, तू स्थान बन जा और हम मृतप्राय हो रहे हैं, तू हमें जीवन दान कर
vatsa! apāra-samudre nimajjataḥ asmān tvaṁ pāraṁ netā bhava. naukā-vihīne agādhe jala-rāśau (mahati saṅkaṭe) tvaṁ asmākaṁ nāvā bhava. asmākaṁ sthānaṁ na avaśiṣṭam; tvaṁ sthānaṁ bhava. vayaṁ mṛta-prāyāḥ; tvaṁ asmān jīvanaṁ dehi.
My child, we are sinking in a boundless ocean—be the one who carries us to the far shore. In this deep, boatless flood of danger, become our boat. For us no refuge remains; become our refuge. We are as good as dead—grant us life.
पुत्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
When others are overwhelmed by संकट (peril) and have no आश्रय (refuge), the one who has capacity and closeness is ethically urged to become their ‘boat’—a means of rescue. The verse frames help not as optional kindness but as life-giving responsibility.
A speaker identified as ‘the son’ pleads with the addressed person (called ‘child/son’ in affectionate address) to save ‘us’ from a dire situation, using sustained metaphors: drowning in a boundless ocean, lacking a boat, having no place to stand, and being near death—therefore asking for deliverance and renewed life.