Shloka 63
Adhyāya 90: Babhruvāhana’s Reception and the Commencement of Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha
पुत्र बवाच अपत्यमस्मि ते पुंसस्त्राणात् पुत्र इति स्मृत: । आत्मा पुत्र: स्मृतस्तस्मात् त्राह्मात्मानमिहात्मना,पुत्र बोला--तात! मैं आपका पुत्र हूँ, पुरुषका त्राण करनेके कारण ही संतानको पुत्र कहा गया है। इसके सिवा पुत्र पिताका अपना ही आत्मा माना गया है; अतः आप अपने आत्मभूत पुत्रके द्वारा अपनी रक्षा कीजिये
putra uvāca—apatyam asmi te puṁsas trāṇāt putra iti smṛtaḥ | ātmā putraḥ smṛtas tasmāt trāhy ātmānam ihātmanā ||
The son said: “Father, I am your offspring. Because a son is held to be the protector (trāṇa) of a man, he is therefore called ‘putra’. Moreover, a son is regarded as the father’s very self; therefore, here and now, protect yourself through me—your own self in the form of your son.”
पुत्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames sonship as a dharmic responsibility: the son is traditionally defined as one who protects the father, and is even regarded as the father’s own self; therefore the father should accept protection and support through the son.
A son addresses his father directly, identifying himself as the father’s offspring and invoking traditional definitions of ‘putra’ to urge the father to rely on him for protection in the present circumstance.