Mahabharata — Adi Parva, Shloka 44
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 115 — Mādri’s request; invocation of the Aśvins; birth and naming of the Pāṇḍavas
महारथानां वीराणां कन्या चैका शताधिका । युयुत्सुश्चन महातेजा वैश्यापुत्र: प्रतापवान्
mahārathānāṃ vīrāṇāṃ kanyā caikā śatādhikā | yuyutsuś ca mahātejā vaiśyāputraḥ pratāpavān ||
Dijo Vaiśampāyana: Dhṛtarāṣṭra tuvo cien hijos varones, héroes todos y grandes guerreros de carro; y además de ellos hubo también una hija. Y, más aún, estaba Yuyutsu, de gran temple y poderoso, hijo de una mujer vaiśya, célebre por su valor. El pasaje subraya que ni el linaje ni la condición social determinan por sí solos el mérito: aun fuera del vientre de la reina, un hijo del rey puede poseer reconocida destreza y un lugar propio en el relato moral y dinástico que se despliega.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that personal merit and recognized prowess can exist beyond formal royal lineage: Yuyutsu, though born of a Vaiśya woman, is acknowledged as mahātejā and pratāpavān, reminding readers that worth is not confined to the queen’s offspring alone.
The narrator summarizes Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s progeny: a hundred warrior sons, one additional daughter, and Yuyutsu—his valorous son born from a Vaiśya woman—thereby completing an important genealogical note within the Kuru family history.
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