Shloka 24

आस्तीक-उपाख्यान-प्रस्तावः | Introduction to the Āstīka Narrative

Devanagari script

पितर ऊचु. यतस्व यत्नवांस्तात संतानाय कुलस्य नः । आत्मनोडर्थेडस्मदर्थे च धर्म इत्येव वा विभो,पितर बोले--तात! तुम हमारे कुलकी संतान-परम्पराको बनाये रखनेके लिये निरन्तर यत्नशील रहकर विवाहके लिये प्रयत्न करो। प्रभो! तुम अपने लिये, हमारे लिये अथवा धर्मका पालन हो, इस उद्देश्यसे पुत्रकी उत्पत्तिके लिये यत्न करो

Transliteration

pitar ūcuḥ | yatasva yatnavāṁs tāta saṁtānāya kulasya naḥ | ātmano 'rthe 'smadarthe ca dharma ity eva vā vibho ||

Translation

The Pitṛs said: “Dear child, exert yourself with steady effort to secure offspring so that our lineage may continue. O mighty one, strive to beget a son—whether for your own sake, for our sake, or simply because it is dharma.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'pitar (pitṛ)', 'meaning': 'the Fathers

• ancestral spirits (Pitṛs)'}, {'term': 'ūcuḥ', 'meaning': 'said (perfect tense, 3rd person plural)'}, {'term': 'yatasva', 'meaning': 'make effort

• strive (imperative)'}, {'term': 'yatnavān', 'meaning': 'diligent

• one who makes effort'}, {'term': 'tāta', 'meaning': 'dear child

• son (affectionate address)'}, {'term': 'saṁtāna', 'meaning': 'progeny

• continuation of a line'}, {'term': 'kulasya', 'meaning': 'of the family/lineage'}, {'term': 'naḥ', 'meaning': 'of us

• our'}, {'term': 'ātmanas arthe', 'meaning': 'for one’s own sake/purpose'}, {'term': 'asmadarthe', 'meaning': 'for our sake'}, {'term': 'dharmaḥ', 'meaning': 'duty

• religious obligation'}, {'term': 'eva', 'meaning': 'indeed

• precisely'}, {'term': 'vā', 'meaning': 'or'}, {'term': 'vibho', 'meaning': 'O powerful one

Speaker

शौनक उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs (ancestral fathers)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames begetting offspring as a dharmic responsibility tied to the continuity of the family line and the obligations owed to one’s ancestors; effort toward marriage and progeny is presented as legitimate whether motivated by personal good, ancestral welfare, or duty itself.

What is happening in the narrative?

The ancestral Fathers (Pitṛs) address a descendant, urging him to make sustained effort to marry and produce a son so that the lineage continues and ancestral obligations are fulfilled.