शकुन्तलोवाच
यथायम् आगमो मह्यं यथा चेदम् अभूत् पुरा ॥
शृणु राजन् यथातत्त्वं यथास्मि दुहिता मुनेः ॥
ऋषिः कश् चिद् इहागम्य मम जन्माभ्यचोदयत् ॥
तस्मै प्रोवाच भगवान् यथा तच् छृणु पार्थिव ॥
तप्यमानः किल पुरा विश्वामित्रो महत् तपः ॥
सुभृशं तापयाम् आस शक्रं सुरगणेश्वरम् ॥
तपसा दीप्तवीर्यो ऽयं स्थानान् मां च्यावयेद् इति ॥
भीतः पुरंदरस् तस्मान् मेनकाम् इदम् अब्रवीत् ॥
गुणैर् दिव्यैर् अप्सरसां मेनके त्वं विशिष्यसे ॥
श्रेयो मे कुरु कल्याणि यत् त्वां वक्ष्यामि तच् छृणु ॥
असाव् आदित्यसंकाशो विश्वामित्रो महातपाः ॥
तप्यमानस् तपो घोरं मम कम्पयते मनः ॥
मेनके तव भारो ऽयं विश्वामित्रः सुमध्यमे ॥
संशितात्मा सुदुर्धर्ष उग्रे तपसि वर्तते ॥
स मां न च्यावयेत् स्थानात् तं वै गत्वा प्रलोभय ॥
चर तस्य तपोविघ्नं कुरु मे प्रियम् उत्तमम् ॥
रूपयौवनमाधुर्यचेष्टितस्मितभाषितैः ॥
लोभयित्वा वरारोहे तपसः संनिवर्तय ॥
śakuntalovāca
yathāyam āgamo mahyaṃ yathā cedam abhūt purā ||
śṛṇu rājan yathātattvaṃ yathāsmi duhitā muneḥ ||
ṛṣiḥ kaś cid ihāgamya mama janmābhyacodayat ||
tasmai provāca bhagavān yathā tac chṛṇu pārthiva ||
tapyamānaḥ kila purā viśvāmitro mahat tapaḥ ||
subhṛśaṃ tāpayām āsa śakraṃ suragaṇeśvaram ||
tapasā dīptavīryo 'yaṃ sthānān māṃ cyāvayed iti ||
bhītaḥ puraṃdaras tasmān menakām idam abravīt ||
guṇair divyair apsarasāṃ menake tvaṃ viśiṣyase ||
śreyo me kuru kalyāṇi yat tvāṃ vakṣyāmi tac chṛṇu ||
asāv ādityasaṃkāśo viśvāmitro mahātapāḥ ||
tapyamānas tapo ghoraṃ mama kampayate manaḥ ||
menake tava bhāro 'yaṃ viśvāmitraḥ sumadhyame ||
saṃśitātmā sudurdharṣa ugre tapasi vartate ||
sa māṃ na cyāvayet sthānāt taṃ vai gatvā pralobhaya ||
cara tasya tapovighnaṃ kuru me priyam uttamam ||
rūpayauvanamādhuryaceṣṭitasmitabhāṣitaiḥ ||
lobhayitvā varārohe tapasaḥ saṃnivartaya ||
Shakuntala said: "O king, how this [account] came to me, how it happened once and how I became the sage's daughter — hear that in truth, O king, how I am the sage's daughter. A certain sage, having come here, questioned about my birth; as the lord [Kanva] told him, so listen, O king. Once Vishvamitra, performing great austerity, greatly troubled Shakra, lord of the host of gods. 'This one, blazing with the power of austerity, will dislodge me from my place' — thus alarmed, Purandara (Indra) said this to Menaka: 'O Menaka, you surpass the other apsarases in divine qualities; O auspicious one, do me a service — listen to what I shall tell you. That sun-like one of great austerity, Vishvamitra, performing dreadful austerity, shakes my mind. O slender-waisted Menaka, self-controlled, unassailable, he abides in fierce austerity; this Vishvamitra is your charge, entrusted to you. See to it that he does not dislodge me from my place; go to him and tempt him, obstruct his austerity, do me this greatest favor. O lovely-hipped one, having enticed him with beauty, youth, sweetness, gestures, smiles, and words, turn him away from his austerity.'"
1227b13f8088 · प्रकाशित 12 जुल॰ 2026, 3:37:30 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
Here Shakuntala begins the tale of her birth, and an ancient theme reveals itself: Indra's fear of the power of austerity. It is significant that Indra, king of the gods, trembles before the ascetic Vishvamitra, fearing to lose his throne. Here is a twofold lesson. First, great is the power of tapas (austerity): even the gods dread the might a practitioner accumulates. But, second — and this matters more — Indra himself here reveals an imperfection: instead of rejoicing in the sage's righteousness, he, in fear for his own power, plots to corrupt him by sending a celestial maiden. Thus scripture shows that even the "gods" (devatas), the administrators of the world, are not free from self-interest and fear; they are not the Supreme, but souls invested with power, subject to weaknesses. Such devatas must be distinguished from the Supreme Lord (Vishnu), who alone is free from fear and envy. And Indra's method — seduction through desire (kama) — lays bare the perennial trap of the ascetic: sensual passion, which destroys the fruits of austerity. Thus is prepared the fall of Vishvamitra — and the birth of Shakuntala.