Srimad Bhagavatam — Shashtha Skandha, Shloka 26
Parīkṣit’s Inquiry into Vṛtrāsura’s Bhakti and the Beginning of Citraketu’s Trial
तत: पाहि महाभाग पूर्वै: सह गतं तम: । यथा तरेम दुष्पारं प्रजया तद्विधेहि न: ॥ २६ ॥
tataḥ pāhi mahā-bhāga pūrvaiḥ saha gataṁ tamaḥ yathā tarema duṣpāraṁ prajayā tad vidhehi naḥ
因此，伟大的圣者啊，请拯救我与我的祖先；因无后嗣，我们正坠入地狱的黑暗。恳请施以方便，使我得一子，好让我们渡过那难以逾越的幽冥。
According to Vedic civilization, one gets married simply to have a son, who is needed to offer oblations to his forefathers. King Citraketu responsibly desired to beget a child so that he and his forefathers might be delivered from the darkest regions. He was concerned with how to get piṇḍa, oblations, in the next life, not only for himself but also for his forefathers. Therefore he requested Aṅgirā Ṛṣi to favor him by doing something that could help him get a son.
FAQs
This verse frames saṁsāra as “duṣpāra,” extremely hard to cross, and teaches that one should pray for divine protection and guidance, seeking the Lord’s arrangement to overcome ignorance and suffering.
In Canto 6, Chapter 14, Citraketu’s queens are distressed by childlessness and the fear of ancestral “darkness”; they appeal to the king—seen as their protector—to arrange relief and the blessing of progeny.
It encourages humble prayer, responsibility, and seeking higher guidance when burdens feel unmanageable—while remembering that true deliverance from “darkness” ultimately comes through spiritual alignment, not merely external solutions.