Shloka 12
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 98 — Paraśurāma’s kṣatriya suppression; Dīrghatamas, Bali, Sudēṣṇā, and the birth of Aṅga
रूयुवाच एवमप्यस्तु धर्मज्ञ संयुज्येयं सुतेन ते । त्वद्धक्त्या तु भजिष्यामि प्रख्यातं भारतं कुलम्,स्त्री बोली--धर्मज्ञ नरेश! आप जैसा कहते हैं, वैसा भी हो सकता है। मैं आपके पुत्रके साथ संयुक्त होऊँगी। आपके प्रति जो मेरी भक्ति है, उसके कारण मैं विख्यात भरतवंशका सेवन करूँगी
strī uvāca: evam apy astu dharmajña saṁyujyeyaṁ sutena te | tvad-bhaktyā tu bhajiṣyāmi prakhyātaṁ bhārataṁ kulam ||
The woman said: “So be it, O knower of dharma. I shall be united with your son. Out of devotion to you, I will enter and uphold your renowned Bharata lineage.”
प्रतीप उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharma in social order: a rightful union is framed as service to a renowned lineage, and personal devotion becomes a motive for sustaining dynastic continuity.
A woman responds to King Pratīpa, agreeing to his condition that she will unite not with him but with his son, and she declares that, out of devotion to the king, she will join the celebrated Bharata family.