Mahabharata · 1.146.14–15
॥
Devanāgarī
कथं तव कुलस्यैकाम् इमां बालाम् असंस्कृताम् ॥
पितृपैतामहे मार्गे नियोक्तुम् अहम् उत्सहे ॥
कथं शक्ष्यामि बाले ऽस्मिन् गुणान् आधातुम् ईप्षितान् ॥
अनाथे सर्वतो लुप्ते यथा त्वं धर्मदर्शिवान् ॥
Transliteration (IAST)
kathaṃ tava kulasyaikām imāṃ bālām asaṃskṛtām ||
pitṛpaitāmahe mārge niyoktum aham utsahe ||
kathaṃ śakṣyāmi bāle 'smin guṇān ādhātum īpṣitān ||
anāthe sarvato lupte yathā tvaṃ dharmadarśivān ||
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
कथं तव कुलस्य एकाम् इमां बालाम् असंस्कृताम्kathaṃ tava kulasya ekām imāṃ bālām asaṃskṛtām"how shall I direct this only girl of your line, [still] uninstructed,
पितृपैतामहे मार्गे नियोक्तुम् अहम् उत्सहेpitṛpaitāmahe mārge niyoktum aham utsaheonto the path of [good conduct] of her fathers and forefathers?
कथं शक्ष्यामि बाले अस्मिन् गुणान् आधातुम् ईप्सितान्kathaṃ śakṣyāmi bāle asmin guṇān ādhātum īpsitānhow shall I be able to instill in this girl the desired virtues,
अनाथे सर्वतः लुप्ते यथा त्वं धर्मदर्शिवान्anāthe sarvataḥ lupte yathā tvaṃ dharmadarśivānI, defenseless, deprived of everything — as you, who perceive dharma?
कुलस्यैकाम्kulasyaikāmoriginal form "kulasyaikām", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
ऽस्मिन्'sminoriginal form "'smin", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
ईप्षितान्īpṣitānoriginal form "īpṣitān", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
सर्वतोsarvatooriginal form "sarvato", added to complete the word-by-word coverage
Translation
"How shall I direct this only girl of your lineage, still uninstructed, onto the path of good conduct of her fathers and forefathers? How shall I be able to instill in this girl the desired virtues — I, defenseless, deprived of everything — as you would, who perceive dharma?"
Version
49d3341258df · published Jul 12, 2026, 5:09:57 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Here the wife shows concern not only for the child's body but for her upbringing in dharma. It is telling that she is anxious about the daughter's "virtues": a life without instruction in good conduct seems to her deficient — a mother worries about the child's soul no less than about its sustenance. Here is the height of parental duty: to nourish is not enough; the child must be brought into dharma, given the path of the ancestors. Telling too is her humility: she acknowledges that her husband, who "perceives dharma," would instruct the daughter better than she could. Thus the text shows that true care for children is care for their righteousness; and in this the wife sees yet another reason why the husband is more needed by the family than she is.