Shloka 18
कच-देवयानी संवादः
Kaca–Devayānī Dialogue and the Curse on Vidyā
शकुन्तलोवाच एतदाचष्ट पृष्ट: सन् मम जन्म महर्षये | सुतां कण्वस्य मामेवं विद्धि त्वं मनुजाधिप,शकुन्तला कहती है--राजन्! उन महर्षिके पूछनेपर पिता कण्वने मेरे जन्मका यह वृत्तान्त उन्हें बताया था। इस तरह आप मुझे कण्वकी ही पुत्री समझिये। मैं अपने जन्मदाता पिताको तो जानती नहीं, कण्वको ही पिता मानती हूँ। महाराज! इस प्रकार जो वृत्तान्त मैंने सुन रखा था, वह सब आपको बता दिया
śakuntalovāca etad ācakṣṭa pṛṣṭaḥ san mama janma maharṣaye | sutāṃ kaṇvasya mām evaṃ viddhi tvaṃ manujādhipa ||
Sinabi ni Śakuntalā: “O hari ng mga tao, nang tanungin ng dakilang rishi ang tungkol sa aking kapanganakan, ito ang isinalaysay ng aking amang si Kaṇva. Kaya, mahal na hari, kilalanin mo akong anak ni Kaṇva. Hindi ko kilala ang amang nagluwal sa akin; si Kaṇva lamang ang kinikilala kong ama. O hari, sinabi ko sa iyo nang tumpak ang salaysay na aking narinig.”
कण्व उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes truthful self-disclosure and the ethical weight of acknowledged parentage: Śakuntalā grounds her identity in the father who raised and recognized her (Kaṇva), highlighting dharma through honesty, gratitude, and socially affirmed lineage.
Śakuntalā addresses the king and recounts what she had heard about her own birth: when a great sage inquired, Kaṇva explained her origin. She asks the king to accept her as Kaṇva’s daughter, since she does not know her biological father and regards Kaṇva as her true father.