Shloka 51

आदि पर्व, अध्याय 96 — काश्यकन्याहरणं, शाल्वसमागमः, अम्बावचनं च

Kāśī princesses taken; encounter with Śālva; Ambā’s declaration

Devanagari script

विचित्रवीर्य: खलु कौसल्यात्मजे अम्बिकाम्बालिके काशिराजदुहितरावुपयेमे ।। ५१ || विचित्रवीर्यने अम्बिका और अम्बालिकासे विवाह किया। वे दोनों काशिराजकी पुत्रियाँ थीं और उनकी माताका नाम कौसल्या था

Transliteration

Vaicitravīryaḥ khalu Kausalyātmaje Ambikāmbālike Kāśirāja-duhitarāv upayeme.

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Indeed, Vicitravīrya married Ambikā and Ambālikā, the two daughters of the king of Kāśī. The verse situates their marriage within the dynastic responsibilities of the Kuru line, where alliances and progeny are treated as matters of royal duty (dharma) rather than private preference.

Word by Word

विचित्रवीर्यःVichitravirya

खलुindeed

कौसल्यात्मजेin/with the two sons of Kausalya (i.e., Kausalya’s sons)

अम्बिकाAmbika

अम्बालिकेAmbalika (and)

काशिराजदुहितरौthe two daughters of the king of Kashi

उपयेमेmarried / took in marriage

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Vicitravīrya

Ambikā

Ambālikā

Kausalyā

Kāśirāja

Kāśī

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores a royal-ethical framework in which marriage functions as a dharmic instrument for sustaining lineage and political stability; personal unions are narrated primarily in terms of duty, alliance, and succession.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana reports that Vicitravīrya marries Ambikā and Ambālikā, identified as the two daughters of the king of Kāśī (born of Kausalyā), establishing the marital link that will shape the continuation of the Kuru line.