शापं प्राप्तो ऽसि दुर्धर्ष न पापं कर्तुम् अर्हसि ॥
ऋतुकाले तु संप्राप्ते भर्त्रास्म्य् अद्य समागता ॥
अकृतार्था ह्य् अहं भर्त्रा प्रसवार्थश् च मे महान् ॥
प्रसीद नृपतिश्रेष्ठ भर्ता मे ऽयं विसृज्यताम् ॥
śāpaṃ prāpto 'si durdharṣa na pāpaṃ kartum arhasi ||
ṛtukāle tu saṃprāpte bhartrāsmy adya samāgatā ||
akṛtārthā hy ahaṃ bhartrā prasavārthaś ca me mahān ||
prasīda nṛpatiśreṣṭha bhartā me 'yaṃ visṛjyatām ||
'Though you are seized by a curse, O unconquerable one, you must not commit evil. In the arrived season of fertility I have now come together with my husband; I have not attained my purpose with him, and great is my desire for offspring. Be gracious, O best of kings -- let this my husband be released.'
a9f5e801f4a7 · published Jul 12, 2026, 5:37:22 PM UTC
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Here the plea joins an argument of dharma with the longing for motherhood. It is telling that she says 'though you are cursed, do not commit evil': a curse does not excuse wrongdoing, and one possessed is not wholly absolved of responsibility. Telling too is the substance of her request: she pleads not for pleasure but for offspring -- her union with her husband was for the sake of a child. Here is the purity of her petition and the weight of the loss now bearing down on her. Thus scripture shows how a woman in utmost need appeals both to conscience and to pity; and this very plea, once rejected, will turn into a fearsome curse.