Shloka 22
कृपकृपी-जननम्
The Birth of Kṛpa and Kṛpī; Kṛpa’s Attainment of Astras
इह तस्मात् प्रजाहेतो: प्रजायन्ते नरोत्तमा: | यथैवाहं पितु: क्षेत्रे जातस्तेन महर्षिणा
iha tasmāt prajāhetoḥ prajāyante narottamāḥ | yathaivāhaṁ pituḥ kṣetre jātas tena maharṣiṇā ||
“เพราะฉะนั้น เพื่อสืบวงศ์สกุล ในโลกนี้บุรุษผู้ประเสริฐจึงถูกให้กำเนิดด้วยวิธีที่กำหนดไว้—ดังเช่นเราผู้เกิดใน ‘นาของบิดา’ ด้วยมหาฤๅษีนั้น”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores a dharmic rationale for begetting children: when continuity of lineage and social responsibility require it, progeny may be produced through sanctioned means, and the moral emphasis is on intention (prajā-hetoḥ) and legitimacy within dharma rather than mere biology.
Vaiśampāyana explains that great men can be born through an arrangement aimed at securing offspring, and he cites his own birth as an example—saying he was born in his father’s ‘field’ (i.e., through his father’s wife) by the agency of a great sage.