Shloka 61
Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ
King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt
मासे च दशमे प्राप्तेतदा भरतसत्तम । उज्जहुरुदरात् तस्याः स्त्री पुमांसं च मानुषम्,उन दोनोंके युद्ध करते समय वह वीर्य यमुनाजीके जलमें गिर पड़ा। अद्रिका नामसे विख्यात एक सुन्दरी अप्सरा ब्रह्माजीके शापसे मछली होकर वहीं यमुनाजीके जलमें रहती थी। बाजके पंजेसे छूटकर गिरे हुए वसुसम्बन्धी उस वीर्यको मत्स्यरूपधारिणी अद्विकाने वेगपूर्वक आकर निगल लिया। भरतश्रेष्ठ! तत्पश्चात् दसवाँ मास आनेपर मत्स्यजीवी मल्लाहोंने उस मछलीको जालमें बाँध लिया और उसके उदरको चीरकर एक कन्या और एक पुरुष निकाला
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
māse ca daśame prāpte tadā bharatasattama |
ujjahur udarāt tasyāḥ strī pumāṃsaṃ ca mānuṣam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “O best of the Bharatas, when the tenth month had arrived, the fisherfolk caught that fish in their net. Cutting open its belly, they brought forth two human children—a girl and a boy.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage underscores how lineage and destiny can unfold through unexpected, even wondrous, channels; it also reflects the epic’s concern with the consequences of prior actions (karma) shaping future generations.
After the completion of a ten-month term, fishermen catch a fish and, upon cutting it open, discover two human infants inside—a girl and a boy—marking the extraordinary birth episode that leads into important dynastic developments.