Shloka 46
नियोगप्रसङ्गः — The Niyoga Episode: Births of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Pāṇḍu, and Vidura
(अयं देवब्रतश्वैव गड्भादत्तश्न मे सुतः | द्विनामा शान्तनो: पुत्र: शान्तनोरधिको गुणै: ।।
vaiśampāyana uvāca | ayaṃ devavrataś caiva gaṅgādattaś ca me sutaḥ | dvināmā śāntanoḥ putraḥ śāntanor adhiko guṇaiḥ || ayaṃ kumāraḥ putras te vivṛddhaḥ punar eṣyati | ahaṃ ca te bhaviṣyāmi āhvānopagatā nṛpa || etad ākhyāya sā devī tatraivāntaradhīyata | ādāya ca kumāraṃ taṃ jagāmātha yathepsitam ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは言った。「王よ、わが子は二つの名で知られるであろう――デーヴァヴラタ（Devavrata）とガンガーより授けられし者、ガンガーダッタ（Gaṅgādatta）と。彼はシャンタヌの子であり、徳においてはシャンタヌすら凌ぐ。そなたの子はまだ幼いが、成長すれば再びそなたのもとへ帰る。さらに、王よ、そなたが我を呼ぶときはいつでも、我はそなたの前に現れよう。」そう言い終えると女神はその場で姿を消し、産まれたばかりの子を抱いて、望むところへと去っていった。かくしてジャナメージャヤよ、ガンガーはこれらを告げたのち、新生児を携えて忽然と消え、意のままに旅立ったのである。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage emphasizes the primacy of guṇa (virtue/character) over mere birth or status: the child is foretold to surpass his father in qualities. It also frames divine agency as operating within royal life—Gaṅgā acts with autonomy yet promises responsiveness to rightful summons, suggesting a moral order where power is tempered by accountability.
Gaṅgā tells King Śāntanu that their son will be known as Devavrata and Gaṅgādatta, will excel in virtues, and will return to Śāntanu after growing up. She then disappears on the spot, taking the infant with her to raise him elsewhere, while the narrator Vaiśampāyana reports this to King Janamejaya.