Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Srimad Bhagavatam 9.18.32

raja-putryarthito 'patye

dharmam cavekshya dharmavit

smaran chukra-vacah kale

dishtam evabhyapadyata

SYNONYMS

raja-putrya -- by Sarmishtha, who was the daughter of a king; arthitah -- being requested; apatye -- for a son; dharmam -- religious principles; ca -- as well as; avekshya -- considering; dharma-vit -- aware of all religious principles; smaran -- remembering; sukra-vacah -- the warning of Sukracarya; kale -- at the time; dishtam -- circumstantially; eva -- indeed; abhyapadyata -- accepted (to fulfill the desire of Sarmishtha).

TRANSLATION

When Princess Sarmishtha begged King Yayati for a son, the King was certainly aware of the principles of religion, and therefore he agreed to fulfill her desire. Although he remembered the warning of Sukracarya, he thought of this union as the desire of the Supreme, and thus he had sex with Sarmishtha.

PURPORT

King Yayati was completely aware of the duty of a kshatriya. When a kshatriya is approached by a woman, he cannot deny her. This is a religious principle. Consequently, when Dharmaraja, Yudhishthira, saw Arjuna unhappy after Arjuna returned from Dvaraka, he asked whether Arjuna had refused a woman who had begged for a son. Although Maharaja Yayati remembered Sukracarya's warning, he could not refuse Sarmishtha. He thought it wise to give her a son, and thus he had sexual intercourse with her after her menstrual period. This kind of lust is not against religious principles. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (7.11), dharmaviruddho bhuteshu kamo 'smi: sex life not contrary to the principles of religion is sanctioned by Krishna. Because Sarmishtha, the daughter of a king, had begged Yayati for a son, their combination was not lust but an act of religion.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness