Shloka 21
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 181 — Svayaṃvara Aftermath: Arjuna–Karna Exchange and Bhīma–Śalya Contest
तेन संगम्य ते भार्या तनयं जनयिष्यति । स ते वंशकर: पुत्रो भविष्यति नृपाधम
tena saṅgamya te bhāryā tanayaṁ janayiṣyati | sa te vaṁśakaraḥ putro bhaviṣyati nṛpādhama ||
The Gandharva said: “Uniting with him, your wife will conceive a son. That son will become the continuer of your lineage, O basest of kings.” In context, this statement follows a grim moral reversal: a king, driven by cruelty and appetite, violates the bounds of dharma by devouring a Brahmin, provoking the Brahmin’s wife to curse him. The verse underscores that even when a ruler falls into adharma and incurs a curse, the cosmic order still ensures continuity of lineage—yet through a path marked by transgression, retribution, and enforced consequence rather than righteous choice.
गन्धर्व उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights moral causality: when a ruler violates dharma, consequences follow through curse and suffering, yet social/cosmic continuity (lineage) may still be maintained—often in a way that exposes the ruler’s disgrace rather than affirming his virtue.
After the king’s brutal act and the Brahmin woman’s curse, the Gandharva declares that the king’s wife will conceive a son through union with another man, and that son will continue the king’s lineage—signaling both the king’s punishment and the ensured continuation of his dynasty.