Shloka 17
आपद्-राजनीतिः (Āpad-rājanīti) — Policy Options in Multi-Front Crisis
प्रसवे चैव नारीणां वृद्धानां पुत्रकारिता । तथा नरेन्द्र धनिनां सा55शा कृशतरी मया
kṛśa uvāca | prasave caiva nārīṇāṁ vṛddhānāṁ putrakāritā | tathā narendra dhanināṁ sāśā kṛśatarī mayā, narendra |
Kṛśa berkata: “Wahai raja, harapan yang masih bersisa dalam hati wanita-wanita yang telah lanjut usia untuk memperoleh seorang putera, dan demikian juga harapan dalam fikiran orang-orang kaya untuk keuntungan yang terus bertambah—harapan sedemikian, wahai penguasa manusia, pada diriku lebih lagi tipisnya.”
कृश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tenacity of human hope—whether for progeny or for wealth—and contrasts it with the speaker’s own diminished expectation, pointing toward vairāgya (detachment) and a sober recognition of desire’s persistence.
Kṛśa addresses a king and uses two vivid comparisons—aged women longing for a son and rich men longing for more riches—to explain that even such strong hopes are, in his case, weaker still, indicating his reduced worldly aspiration.