Shloka 11
आत्मप्रदानं दुधर्ष तव कृत्वा सती त्वहम् । त्वयि धर्मो यशश्रैव कीर्तिरायुश्व देहिनाम्,दुर्धर्ष देव! क्या मैं आपको आत्मदान करके भी सती-साध्वी रह सकती हूँ? आपमें ही देहधारियोंके धर्म, यश, कीर्ति तथा आयु प्रतिष्ठित हैं
ātmapradānaṃ dudharṣa tava kṛtvā satī tv aham | tvayi dharmo yaśaś caiva kīrtir āyuś ca dehinām ||
“O ikaw na di matatalo! Kung iaalay ko ang aking sarili sa iyo—ako na isang tapat at malinis na asawa—maaari pa rin ba akong manatiling marangal at tapat na maybahay? Sapagkat sa iyo lamang nakasalig ang dharma, dangal, katanyagan, at maging ang haba ng buhay ng lahat ng may katawan.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical tension between personal surrender and marital fidelity, asserting that true dharma and the goods of life (honor, fame, longevity) ultimately depend on the divine or supreme moral foundation addressed as ‘invincible’.
A woman-speaker (reported by Vaiśampāyana) addresses an invincible divine figure, questioning whether offering herself would compromise her status as a satī, while simultaneously acknowledging that all moral and social goods for embodied beings rest in that being.