Shloka 5
अम्बोपाख्याने तापसानां विचारः तथा होत्रवाहनस्य उपदेशः
Ambā among ascetics; Hotravāhana directs her to Paraśurāma
(अभिनन्दस्व मां राजन् सदा प्रियहिते रताम् । प्रतिपादय मां राजन् धर्मार्थ चैव धर्मतः ।।
abhinandāsva māṃ rājan sadā priyahite ratām | pratipādaya māṃ rājan dharmārthaṃ caiva dharmataḥ || tvaṃ hi manasā dhyātas tvayā cāpy upamantritā ||
“大王，我一向只求你所爱、你所利。请你欢然纳我。人中王者，请依达摩收受我，为了达摩赐我立足于你足下之地。我心中常常思念的唯有你；而你也曾在私下向我传达过婚约之意！”萨尔瓦王听罢安芭之言，似笑非笑地说道：“美貌的女子啊，你已先属他人；因此我并不愿娶你为妻。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames marriage and personal claims within the bounds of dharma: even intimate intentions and mutual attraction are presented as needing lawful, ethically sanctioned acceptance, emphasizing that social-ethical order (dharma) governs private desire.
A woman (contextually, Amba in this episode) appeals to a king to accept her as a lawful wife, asserting her devotion and recalling that he had earlier privately proposed. The speech is reported here under Bhishma’s narration.