Shloka 38
Aśmagīta: Janaka’s Inquiry on Loss, Kāla, and the Limits of Control (अश्मगीता)
मातापितृसहस्राणि पुत्रदारशतानि च । संसारेष्वनुभूतानि कस्य ते कस्य वा वयम्
mātāpitr̥sahasrāṇi putradāraśatāni ca | saṁsāreṣv anubhūtāni kasya te kasya vā vayam ||
阇那迦说道：“在漫长的轮回流转中，我们一次又一次出生，经历过千千万万的父母，也有过数百的儿子与妻子。然而如今——他们是谁的？我们又是谁的？这些关系究竟归属于谁？”
जनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
Repeated births create countless familial bonds, showing that worldly relations are transient and not ultimately ‘mine’ or ‘yours’. The verse urges discernment and detachment (vairāgya), pointing toward a stable basis of identity beyond changing social roles.
King Janaka reflects philosophically on saṁsāra: across innumerable lives one has had many parents, spouses, and children. By questioning ownership and belonging—‘whose are they, whose are we?’—he undermines possessiveness and prepares the ground for teachings on liberation-oriented conduct.