Shloka 22
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 98 — Paraśurāma’s kṣatriya suppression; Dīrghatamas, Bali, Sudēṣṇā, and the birth of Aṅga
कामयानाभिरूपाद्या दिव्या स्त्री पुत्रकाम्यया । सा त्वया नानुयोक्तव्या कासि कस्यासि चाड़ने,'शान्तनो! पूर्वकालमें मेरे समीप एक दिव्य नारी आयी थी। उसका आगमन तुम्हारे कल्याणके लिये ही हुआ था। बेटा! यदि वह सुन्दरी कभी एकान्तमें तुम्हारे पास आवे, तुम्हारे प्रति कामभावसे युक्त हो और तुमसे पुत्र पानेकी इच्छा रखती हो, तो तुम उत्तम रूपसे सुशोभित उस दिव्य नारीसे “अंगने! तुम कौन हो? किसकी पुत्री हो? इत्यादि प्रश्न न करना
kāmayānābhirūpādyā divyā strī putrakāmyayā | sā tvayā nānuyoktavyā kāsi kasyāsi cāḍane, śāntano |
Vaiśampāyana said: “O Śāntanu, in former times a radiant, heavenly woman—beautiful and alluring—came to me, driven by the desire to obtain a son. If that splendid divine lady should ever come to you in private, filled with passion toward you and wishing to conceive a child, you must not question her—‘Who are you? Whose daughter are you?’ and the like.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores restraint and obedience to a prior injunction: when a divinely purposed encounter arises—especially one tied to lineage and destiny—one should not disrupt it through probing questions that violate the given condition.
Vaiśampāyana recounts an earlier event and gives Śāntanu a specific instruction: if a celestial woman approaches him privately with the intention of bearing a son, he must accept the encounter without interrogating her identity or parentage.