Shloka 22

कुरुवंशप्रश्नः—दुःषन्तस्य राजधर्मवर्णनम्

Kuru Lineage Inquiry and the Portrait of King Duḥṣanta’s Rule

Devanagari script

महिषीयुवराजाभ्यां श्रोतव्यं बहुशस्तथा । वीरं जनयते पुत्र कन्यां वा राज्यभागिनीम्‌,युवराज तथा रानीको बारम्बार इसका श्रवण करते रहना चाहिये, इससे वह वीर पुत्र अथवा राज्यसिंहासनपर बैठनेवाली कन्याको जन्म देती है

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca |

mahiṣī-yuvarājābhyāṃ śrotavyaṃ bahuśas tathā |

vīraṃ janayate putraṃ kanyāṃ vā rājya-bhāginīm ||

Translation

พระมเหสีเอกและรัชทายาทพึงสดับเรื่องนี้ซ้ำแล้วซ้ำเล่า. ด้วยการสดับอย่างตั้งใจนั้น สตรีจักให้กำเนิดบุตรชายผู้กล้าหาญ หรือธิดาผู้สมควรมีส่วนในราชสมบัติ—คู่ควรแก่บัลลังก์.

Word by Word

महिषीqueen, chief wife

युवराजाभ्याम्by/with the two princes (heirs-apparent)

श्रोतव्यम्is to be heard; should be listened to

बहुशःmany times, repeatedly

तथाthus; likewise

वीरम्a heroic (one)

जनयतेbegets; gives birth to

पुत्रम्a son

कन्याम्a daughter

वाor

राज्यभागिनीम्one who has a share in the kingdom (heiress)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

mahiṣī (chief queen)

yuvarāja (crown prince)

putra (son)

kanyā (daughter)

rājya (kingdom/sovereignty)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Repeated, respectful listening to an elevating narrative or instruction is presented as a formative royal discipline: it refines character and is believed to support the birth (and, by implication, the upbringing) of offspring suited for dharmic leadership—either a heroic son or a daughter fit to share sovereignty.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana states a prescriptive remark aimed at the royal household: the chief queen and the crown prince are urged to hear a certain account repeatedly, with the promised result that the queen will bear a worthy heir—male or female—capable of upholding the kingdom.