Shloka 12
चित्रसेन-समागमः / The Engagement with Citrasena and the Gandharvas
यदैव भर्ता जानीयान्मन्त्रमूलपरां स्त्रियम् । उद्विजेत तदैवास्या: सर्पाद् वेश्मगतादिव,“जब पतिको यह मालूम हो जाय कि उसकी पत्नी उसे वशमें करनेके लिये किसी मन्त्र-तन्त्र अथवा जड़ी-बूटीका प्रयोग कर रही है तो वह उससे उसी प्रकार उद्विग्न हो उठता है जैसे अपने घरमें घुसे हुए सर्पसे लोग शंकित रहते हैं”
yadaiva bhartā jānīyān mantramūlaparāṃ striyam | udvijeta tadaivāsyāḥ sarpād veśmagatād iva ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “The very moment a husband learns that his wife is resorting to spells, rites, or herb-born charms to bring him under her sway, he is at once alarmed by her—just as people are frightened when a snake has entered their house.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that attempting to dominate a spouse through mantras, rites, or herb-based charms destroys trust and produces fear and aversion; ethical household life depends on transparency and mutual confidence rather than coercive or secret means.
Vaiśampāyana states a general observation: if a husband discovers that his wife is using mantra- or herb-based methods to bring him under control, he becomes immediately disturbed by her, likened to the fear people feel when a snake has entered their home.