Shloka 14
कथं तव कुलस्यैकामिमां बालामनागसम् । पितृपैतामहे मार्गे नियोक्तुमहमुत्सहे,आपके कुलकी इस एकमात्र निरपराध बालिकाको मैं बाप-दादोंके द्वारा पालित धर्ममार्गपर लगाये रखनेमें कैसे समर्थ होऊँगी
kathaṁ tava kulasyaikām imāṁ bālām anāgasam | pitṛ-paitāmahe mārge niyoktum aham utsahe ||
Le brāhmane dit : «Comment pourrais-je me résoudre à placer cette unique jeune fille, innocente, de ta lignée, sur la voie ancestrale transmise par les pères et les aïeux ? Comment oserais-je la conduire vers ce devoir hérité ?»
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds ethical restraint in exercising authority: even when tradition offers an “ancestral path,” one should hesitate to impose it upon a vulnerable, innocent person without clear moral warrant. Dharma here is not mere inheritance but a responsibility requiring conscientious judgment.
A brāhmaṇa speaker addresses someone about a young girl who is the sole child of that lineage. He expresses reluctance and moral hesitation to “direct” or “enjoin” her onto the ancestral course of conduct, emphasizing her innocence and the weight of deciding her life’s path.