FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 9.16.35

ज्येष्ठं मन्त्रद‍ृशं चक्रुस्त्वामन्वञ्चो वयं स्म हि । विश्वामित्र: सुतानाह वीरवन्तो भविष्यथ । ये मानं मेऽनुगृह्णन्तो वीरवन्तमकर्त माम् ॥ ३५ ॥
jyeṣṭhaṁ mantra-dṛśaṁ cakrus
[jyeshtham mantra-drisham chakrus]
tvām anvañco vayaṁ sma hi
[tvaam anvancho vayam sma hi]
viśvāmitraḥ sutān āha
[vishvaamitrah sutaan aaha]
vīravanto bhaviṣyatha
[veeravanto bhavishyatha]
ye mānaṁ me ’nugṛhṇanto
[ye maanam me ’nugrihnanto]
vīravantam akarta mām
[veeravantam akarta maam]
jyeṣṭham — the eldest mantra-dṛśam — a seer of mantras cakruḥ — they accepted tvām — you anvañcaḥ — have agreed to follow vayam — we sma — indeed hi — certainly viśvāmitraḥ — the great sage Viśvāmitra sutān — to the obedient sons āha — said vīra-vantaḥ — fathers of sons bhaviṣyatha — become in the future ye — all of you who mānam — honor me — my anugṛhṇantaḥ — accepted vīra-vantam — the father of good sons akarta — you have made mām — me.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
jyeṣṭhaṁ mantra-dṛśaṁ cakrus
jyeṣṭham
the eldest
mantra-dṛśam
a seer of mantras
cakruḥ
they accepted
tvām anvañco vayaṁ sma hi
tvām
you
anvañcaḥ
have agreed to follow
vayam
we
sma
indeed
hi
certainly
viśvāmitraḥ sutān āha
viśvāmitraḥ
the great sage Viśvāmitra
sutān
to the obedient sons
āha
said
vīravanto bhaviṣyatha
vīra-vantaḥ
fathers of sons
bhaviṣyatha
become in the future
ye mānaṁ me ’nugṛhṇanto
ye
all of you who
mānam
honor
me
my
anugṛhṇantaḥ
accepted
vīravantam akarta mām
vīra-vantam
the father of good sons
akarta
you have made
mām
me.
Thus the younger Madhucchandās accepted Śunaḥśepha as their eldest brother and told him, “We shall follow your orders.” Viśvāmitra then said to his obedient sons, “Because you have accepted Śunaḥśepha as your eldest brother, I am very satisfied. By accepting my order, you have made me a father of worthy sons, and therefore I bless all of you to become the fathers of sons also.”

Of the one hundred sons, half disobeyed Viśvāmitra by not accepting Śunaḥśepha as their eldest brother, but the other half accepted his order. Therefore the father blessed the obedient sons to become the fathers of sons. Otherwise they too would have been cursed to be sonless mlecchas.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The younger Madhucchandās accepted Śunaḥśepha, seer of mantras, as their eldest brother and told him, "We shall follow your orders." Viśvāmitra then said to his sons, "You, who accepted to honor me, will have sons. You have made me have sons." The younger sons accepted Śunaḥśepha, seer of mantras, as the eldest son. He revealed mantras such as kasya nūnaṁ katamasyāmṛtānām. They said, “We, who are younger, will follow you.” Viśvāmitra, being pleased, said to them, “You will have sons. You accepted me as respectable by following my order. Thus, you have made me have sons. Otherwise if you also received my curse and became mlecchas, I would be without sons.”
Pleased, Viśvāmitra blesses the obedient sons that they too shall be fathers of sons. Obedience to one's father is itself a kind of fertility — it earns the right to be a father in turn.
Reflection Questions
  • Where might my fatherly or motherly capacity be limited by my own undone filial obedience?
  • What blessing might be waiting on the other side of a single act of agreement?
📝 My note

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