तथेत्य् उक्त्वा तु ते सर्वे प्रातिष्ठन्तामितौजसः ॥
शकुन्तलां पुरस्कृत्य सपुत्रां गजसाह्वयम् ॥
गृहीत्वामरगर्भाभं पुत्रं कमललोचनम् ॥
आजगाम ततः शुभ्रा दुःषन्तविदिताद् वनात् ॥
अभिसृत्य च राजानं विदिता सा प्रवेशिता ॥
सह तेनैव पुत्रेण तरुणादित्यवर्चसा ॥
पूजयित्वा यथान्यायम् अब्रवीत् तं शकुन्तला ॥
अयं पुत्रस् त्वया राजन् यौवराज्ये ऽभिषिच्यताम् ॥
त्वया ह्य् अयं सुतो राजन् मय्य् उत्पन्नः सुरोपमः ॥
यथासमयम् एतस्मिन् वर्तस्व पुरुषोत्तम ॥
यथा समागमे पूर्वं कृतः स समयस् त्वया ॥
तं स्मरस्व महाभाग कण्वाश्रमपदं प्रति ॥
सो ऽथ श्रुत्वैव तद् वाक्यं तस्या राजा स्मरन्न् अपि ॥
अब्रवीन् न स्मरामीति कस्य त्वं दुष्टतापसि ॥
धर्मकामार्थसंबन्धं न स्मरामि त्वया सह ॥
गच्छ वा तिष्ठ वा कामं यद् वापीच्छसि तत् कुरु ॥
सैवम् उक्ता वरारोहा व्रीडितेव मनस्विनी ॥
विसंज्ञेव च दुःखेन तस्थौ स्थाणुर् इवाचला ॥
संरम्भामर्षताम्राक्षी स्फुरमाणोष्ठसंपुटा ॥
कटाक्षैर् निर्दहन्तीव तिर्यग् राजानम् ऐक्षत ॥
आकारं गूहमाना च मन्युनाभिसमीरिता ॥
तपसा संभृतं तेजो धारयाम् आस वै तदा ॥
tathety uktvā tu te sarve prātiṣṭhantāmitaujasaḥ ||
śakuntalāṃ puraskṛtya saputrāṃ gajasāhvayam ||
gṛhītvāmaragarbhābhaṃ putraṃ kamalalocanam ||
ājagāma tataḥ śubhrā duḥṣantaviditād vanāt ||
abhisṛtya ca rājānaṃ viditā sā praveśitā ||
saha tenaiva putreṇa taruṇādityavarcasā ||
pūjayitvā yathānyāyam abravīt taṃ śakuntalā ||
ayaṃ putras tvayā rājan yauvarājye 'bhiṣicyatām ||
tvayā hy ayaṃ suto rājan mayy utpannaḥ suropamaḥ ||
yathāsamayam etasmin vartasva puruṣottama ||
yathā samāgame pūrvaṃ kṛtaḥ sa samayas tvayā ||
taṃ smarasva mahābhāga kaṇvāśramapadaṃ prati ||
so 'tha śrutvaiva tad vākyaṃ tasyā rājā smarann api ||
abravīn na smarāmīti kasya tvaṃ duṣṭatāpasi ||
dharmakāmārthasaṃbandhaṃ na smarāmi tvayā saha ||
gaccha vā tiṣṭha vā kāmaṃ yad vāpīcchasi tat kuru ||
saivam uktā varārohā vrīḍiteva manasvinī ||
visaṃjñeva ca duḥkhena tasthau sthāṇur ivācalā ||
saṃrambhāmarṣatāmrākṣī sphuramāṇoṣṭhasaṃpuṭā ||
kaṭākṣair nirdahantīva tiryag rājānam aikṣata ||
ākāraṃ gūhamānā ca manyunābhisamīritā ||
tapasā saṃbhṛtaṃ tejo dhārayām āsa vai tadā ||
"Those immeasurably strong disciples, having said 'let it be so,' placing Shakuntala with her son before them, set out for the city of Hastinapura (the City of Elephants). That radiant maiden, taking her lotus-eyed son, radiant as though conceived by a god, came from the forest known to Dushyanta. She, having announced herself, approaching the king, together with that son, radiant as the young sun, was ushered in to him. Shakuntala, having honored him as was proper, said: 'O king, this son of yours — let him be installed by you as heir. O king, this godlike son has been begotten by you in me; O best of men, act toward him according to the pact. As, formerly, at our union, that pact was made by you — O fortunate one, remember it, made at Kanva's hermitage.' That king, having heard that speech, though he remembered, said: 'I do not remember; whose are you, wicked ascetic woman? I do not remember any bond with you in dharma, desire, or gain; go or stay, or do whatever you wish.' That fair-thighed, wise woman, thus addressed, stood as though ashamed, as though bereft of her senses from grief, motionless as a post. With eyes reddened by rage and indignation, with quivering lips, as though scorching him with sidelong glances, she looked askance at the king. Stirred by wrath, concealing her feeling, she then held within herself the fire gathered by her austerities."
ae9a6b92b14b · प्रकाशित 12 जुल॰ 2026, 3:37:30 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
Here begins the sorrowful trial: the king disowns his wife and son. It is telling that the text states plainly: the king, "though he remembered, said: I do not remember" — that is, he disowns her knowingly, out of false shame before the assembly and fear of gossip. Here even a righteous king falls before the opinion of others: fear of censure drives Dushyanta to falsehood and cruelty toward an innocent woman. It is a bitter lesson in how strong the fear of gossip can be in the human heart, capable of silencing both conscience and love. Yet equally telling is the image of Shakuntala: insulted, she does not burst into reproach, but "stands motionless, like a post," concealing her wrath and holding within herself the "fire gathered by her austerities." Thus the text reveals the greatness of insulted virtue: she is powerful (she could scorch him to ashes), yet she governs herself; her dignity lies in self-restraint. And this restrained wrath of the righteous woman is about to break forth not in a curse, but in speech — one of the greatest defenses of truth, duty, and a wife's dignity in the whole epic.