tataḥ pÄhi mahÄ-bhÄga
pūrvaiḥ saha gataṠtamaḥ
yathÄ tarema duá¹£pÄraá¹
prajayÄ tad vidhehi naḥ
tataḥ - therefore, because of this; pÄhi - kindly save; mahÄ-bhÄga - O great sage; pÅ«rvaiḥ saha - along with my forefathers; gatam - gone; tamaḥ - to darkness; yathÄ - so that; tarema - we can cross; duá¹£pÄram - very difficult to cross; prajayÄ - by getting a son; tat - that; vidhehi - kindly do; naḥ - for us.
According to Vedic civilization, one gets married simply to have a son, who is needed to offer oblations to his forefathers. King Citraketu responsibly desired to beget a child so that he and his forefathers might be delivered from the darkest regions. He was concerned with how to get piṇá¸a, oblations, in the next life, not only for himself but also for his forefathers. Therefore he requested Aá¹…girÄ á¹šá¹£i to favor him by doing something that could help him get a son.