Shloka 11
देवा ऊचु: ऋणिनो मानवा ब्रह्मन् जायन्ते येन तच्छूणु । क्रियाभिन्रह्मचर्येण प्रजया च न संशय:
devā ūcuḥ—ṛṇino mānavā brahman jāyante yena tac chṛṇu | kriyābhir brahmacaryeṇa prajayā ca na saṃśayaḥ |
诸神说道：“婆罗门啊，且听人类为何生而负债。毫无疑问，众人皆负三种义务之债：祭祀之业（yajña）、梵行之戒（brahmacarya）、以及繁衍子嗣。以祭祀、苦行与吠陀之学，方能偿尽诸债。你确是苦行者，亦行祭祀，然而你并无子嗣。”
मन्दपाल उवाच
Educational Q&A
Humans are born with obligations (ṛṇa) that must be repaid through dharmic life: ritual duty (yajña/karma), disciplined Vedic conduct (brahmacarya and study), and continuation of lineage through offspring (prajā). A complete life is framed as responsibly discharging these debts.
Divine beings instruct a brahmin sage about the inborn human obligations and imply that, although he practices austerity and sacrifice, he remains deficient in the debt connected with progeny because he has no children.