Mahabharata — Adi Parva, Shloka 29
कृपकृपी-जननम्
The Birth of Kṛpa and Kṛpī; Kṛpa’s Attainment of Astras
इष्टं दत्तं तपस्तप्तं नियमश्न स्वनुछ्ित: । सर्वमेवानपत्यस्य न पावनमिहोच्यते
iṣṭaṃ dattaṃ tapastaptaṃ niyamaś ca svanuṣṭhitaḥ | sarvam evānapatyasya na pāvanam ihocyate ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : «Même si un homme sans descendance a dûment accompli sacrifices, dons, austérités et disciplines, tout cela n’est pourtant pas déclaré purificateur pour lui en ce monde.»
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts that, within the epic’s dharma framework, sacrifices, charity, austerity, and observances are not regarded as fully purifying for a person who has no offspring—highlighting progeny as a key pillar of social-religious legitimacy and continuity.
Vaiśampāyana, narrating the Mahābhārata, states a general dharma-principle about the perceived religious and social incompleteness of a childless life, setting ethical context for concerns about lineage and succession in the surrounding story.