इमे वै बन्धुदायादाः षट् पुत्रा धर्मदर्शने ॥
षड् एवाबन्धुदायादाः पुत्रास् ताञ् शृणु मे पृथे ॥
स्वयंजातः प्रणीतश् च परिक्रीतश् च यः सुतः ॥
पौनर्भवश् च कानीनः स्वैरिण्यां यश् च जायते ॥
दत्तः क्रीतः कृत्रिमश् च उपगच्छेत् स्वयं च यः ॥
सहोढो जातरेताश् च हीनयोनिधृतश् च यः ॥
पूर्वपूर्वतमाभावे मत्वा लिप्सेत वै सुतम् ॥
उत्तमाद् अवराः पुंसः काङ्क्षन्ते पुत्रम् आपदि ॥
अपत्यं धर्मफलदं श्रेष्ठं विन्दन्ति साधवः ॥
आत्मशुक्राद् अपि पृथे मनुः स्वायम्भुवो ऽब्रवीत् ॥
ime vai bandhudāyādāḥ ṣaṭ putrā dharmadarśane ||
ṣaḍ evābandhudāyādāḥ putrās tāñ śṛṇu me pṛthe ||
svayaṃjātaḥ praṇītaś ca parikrītaś ca yaḥ sutaḥ ||
paunarbhavaś ca kānīnaḥ svairiṇyāṃ yaś ca jāyate ||
dattaḥ krītaḥ kṛtrimaś ca upagacchet svayaṃ ca yaḥ ||
sahoḍho jātaretāś ca hīnayonidhṛtaś ca yaḥ ||
pūrvapūrvatamābhāve matvā lipseta vai sutam ||
uttamād avarāḥ puṃsaḥ kāṅkṣante putram āpadi ||
apatyaṃ dharmaphaladaṃ śreṣṭhaṃ vindanti sādhavaḥ ||
ātmaśukrād api pṛthe manuḥ svāyambhuvo 'bravīt ||
"Here are six kinds of sons — heirs of kinship, according to the teaching of dharma — and six others that are not heirs of kinship; listen to me about them, O Pritha: one born of oneself; one begotten by appointment (niyoga); one bought; the son of a remarried woman; one born of an unmarried maiden; one born of a wanton woman; one given in adoption; one bought; an adopted one; one who comes of his own accord; one brought in the womb of the bride; one born of another's seed; and one taken from a lowly womb. In the absence of a son of a higher kind, let a man desire the next; in distress, even lesser men desire a son from a superior. The righteous obtain the best offspring, which bestows the fruit of dharma, even not from their own seed, O Pritha — so said Manu Svayambhuva."
8be21df501b8 · published Jul 12, 2026, 4:41:49 PM UTC
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Here Pandu sets forth the ancient teaching on the kinds of sons, to establish the legitimacy of niyoga. It is notable that scripture recognizes many ways of obtaining offspring, placing "one born of oneself" above the rest, yet allowing others "in distress" (āpadi). This is part of varnashrama-dharma, whose ordinances are adapted to different human conditions and ages; in the era when niyoga was still permitted, it served as a lawful means of continuing the line when the husband was incapable. Notable too is the reference to Manu: "the righteous obtain good offspring even not from their own seed" — that is, a son's worth lies not in blood-seed alone, but in the dharma of his conception and upbringing. It should also be remembered that in the present age of Kali niyoga is forbidden (as one of the practices abolished for this age), and so here one must see an ordinance of another time, not a model to imitate. Thus scripture reveals the flexibility of dharma across ages, leaving unchanged only the aspiration toward offspring that is good and pleasing to God.