बाला क्षुधार्ता नारी च रक्ष्या त्वं सततं मया | उपवासपरिश्रान्ता त्वं हि बान्धवनन्दिनी
Transliteration
bālā kṣudhārtā nārī ca rakṣyā tvaṃ satataṃ mayā | upavāsapariśrāntā tvaṃ hi bāndhavanandinī ||
Translation
तुम अभी बालिका हो, भूख से पीड़ित हो, नारी हो और उपवास करते-करते अत्यन्त क्षीण हो गई हो; इसलिए मेरा सदा कर्तव्य है कि मैं तुम्हारी रक्षा करूँ, क्योंकि तुम अपनी सेवा से कुल-परिजनों को आनन्दित करने वाली हो।
Word by Word
[{'term''bālā', 'definition': 'a young girl
[{'term':
one needing care'}, {'term''kṣudhā', 'definition': 'hunger'}, {'term': 'kṣudhārtā', 'definition': 'afflicted/tormented by hunger'}, {'term': 'nārī', 'definition': 'woman'}, {'term': 'rakṣyā', 'definition': 'to be protected
one needing care'}, {'term':
worthy of protection (gerundive)'}, {'term''satataṃ', 'definition': 'always
worthy of protection (gerundive)'}, {'term':
continually'}, {'term''mayā', 'definition': 'by me
continually'}, {'term':
on my part'}, {'term''upavāsa', 'definition': 'fasting
on my part'}, {'term':
religious abstinence from food'}, {'term''pariśrāntā', 'definition': 'exhausted
because (emphatic/causal particle)'}, {'term''bāndhava', 'definition': 'kinsman
because (emphatic/causal particle)'}, {'term':
family member'}, {'term''nandinī', 'definition': 'one who delights
family member'}, {'term':
Speaker
श्षशुर उवाच
Characters & Entities
Ś
śvaśura (father-in-law, speaker)
B
bālā (young girl, addressed woman)
B
bāndhava (kinsfolk/relatives)
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Educational Q&A
The verse frames protection as a dharmic obligation: when someone is young, hungry, physically weakened, and socially vulnerable, the guardian’s duty is continuous care. It also recognizes the moral worth of service that sustains family harmony.
A father-in-law addresses a young woman who is suffering from hunger and exhaustion due to fasting, and he declares that he must always protect her, emphasizing her vulnerable condition and her role as a source of joy to the family.
