Shloka 29
Parīkṣit’s Inquiry into Vṛtrāsura’s Bhakti and the Beginning of Citraketu’s Trial
अथाह नृपतिं राजन् भवितैकस्तवात्मज: । हर्षशोकप्रदस्तुभ्यमिति ब्रह्मसुतो ययौ ॥ २९ ॥
athāha nṛpatiṁ rājan bhavitaikas tavātmajaḥ harṣa-śoka-pradas tubhyam iti brahma-suto yayau
അതിനുശേഷം ബ്രഹ്മപുത്രനായ അങ്ഗിരാ ഋഷി രാജാവിനോട് പറഞ്ഞു—“രാജനേ, നിനക്ക് ഒരുപുത്രൻ ഉണ്ടാകും; അവൻ നിനക്കു ഹർഷവും ശോകവും നൽകും.” ഇങ്ങനെ പറഞ്ഞ് രാജാവിന്റെ മറുപടി കാത്തിരിക്കാതെ ഋഷി പുറപ്പെട്ടു।
The word harṣa means “jubilation,” and śoka means “lamentation.” The King was overwhelmed with joy when he understood that he would have a son. Because of his great jubilation, he could not actually understand the statement of the sage Aṅgirā. He accepted it to mean that there would certainly be jubilation because of the birth of his future son, but that he would be the King’s only son and, being very proud of his great wealth and empire, would not be very obedient to his father. Thus the King was satisfied, thinking, “Let there be a son. It does not matter if he is not very obedient.” In Bengal there is a proverb that instead of having no maternal uncle, it is better to have a maternal uncle who is blind. The King accepted this philosophy, thinking that a disobedient son would be better than no son at all. The great sage Cāṇakya Paṇḍita says:
FAQs
This verse shows that the same worldly attachment—here, having a son—can bring both joy and grief, urging a devotee to cultivate detachment and take shelter of bhakti beyond changing circumstances.
Nārada foretold that Citraketu would get a son, but that the event would also lead to lamentation—setting the stage for Citraketu’s spiritual awakening and deeper turn toward devotion.
Receive blessings and setbacks with steadiness: love your family duties, but don’t make them your ultimate refuge—anchor your identity in devotion and inner discipline so joy and loss don’t break you.