Shloka 6
Ruru–Pramadvarā: Lineage, Fosterage, Betrothal, and the Snakebite Crisis (Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 8)
एतस्मिन्नेव काले तु मेनकायां प्रजज्ञिवान् । गन्धर्वराजो वित्रर्षे विश्वावसुरिति स्मृत:,विप्रर्षे! इन्हीं महर्षिके समयकी बात हैं--गन्धर्वराज विश्वावसुने मेनकाके गर्भसे एक संतान उत्पन्न की
etasminneva kāle tu menakāyāṃ prajajñivān | gandharvarājo vitarṣe viśvāvasur iti smṛtaḥ ||
Śaunaka dijo: «En aquel mismo tiempo, el rey de los gandharvas—conocido entre los sabios como Viśvāvasu—engendró un hijo en Menakā.»
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse primarily functions as genealogical narration: it highlights how significant lineages and future events can arise from unions involving celestial beings. Ethically, it reflects the epic’s broader theme that origins and relationships—however extraordinary—carry consequences that unfold across generations.
Śaunaka, within the frame dialogue, states that at that time the Gandharva king Viśvāvasu fathered a child with Menakā. This is a lineage note that connects characters and sets up later narrative developments.