Shloka 58
पुत्रार्थो विहितो होष वार्धके परिपालनम् | श्रुतिरेषा हि विप्रषें त्रिषु लोकेषु शाश्वती,पुत्र होनेका यही फल है कि वह वृद्धावस्थामें पिताकी रक्षा करे। ब्रह्मर्षे! तीनों लोकोंमें यह सनातन श्रुति प्रसिद्ध है
putrārtho vihito hoṣa vārdhake paripālanam | śrutir eṣā hi vipraṛṣe triṣu lokeṣu śāśvatī ||
The son said: “O venerable sage, the very purpose for which a son is enjoined is this—he should protect and care for his father in old age. O Brahmarṣi, this is an eternal Vedic teaching, renowned throughout the three worlds.”
पुत्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
That the dharmic purpose of having a son includes the obligation to protect, maintain, and personally care for one’s father in old age; this duty is grounded in śruti (Vedic authority) and treated as universally valid.
A son is speaking to a revered Brahmarṣi, justifying or affirming a course of action by citing an established śruti principle: filial responsibility—especially the care of parents in their vulnerable old age—is a timeless norm recognized across the three worlds.