Shloka 24
Pūru-vaṁśa, Duṣmanta–Śakuntalā, and the Rise of Mahārāja Bharata
चक्रं दक्षिणहस्तेऽस्य पद्मकोशोऽस्य पादयो: । ईजे महाभिषेकेण सोऽभिषिक्तोऽधिराड् विभु: ॥ २४ ॥ पञ्चपञ्चाशता मेध्यैर्गङ्गायामनु वाजिभि: । मामतेयं पुरोधाय यमुनामनु च प्रभु: ॥ २५ ॥ अष्टसप्ततिमेध्याश्वान् बबन्ध प्रददद् वसु । भरतस्य हि दौष्मन्तेरग्नि: साचीगुणे चित: । सहस्रं बद्वशो यस्मिन् ब्राह्मणा गा विभेजिरे ॥ २६ ॥
cakraṁ dakṣiṇa-haste ’sya padma-kośo ’sya pādayoḥ īje mahābhiṣekeṇa so ’bhiṣikto ’dhirāḍ vibhuḥ
Mahārāja Bharata, der Sohn Duṣmantas, trug auf der rechten Handfläche das Zeichen der Scheibe Śrī Kṛṣṇas und auf den Fußsohlen das Zeichen eines Lotuswirbels. Indem er den höchsten Puruṣa in der großartigen Zeremonie des mahābhiṣeka verehrte, wurde er gesalbt und zum Adhīrāja, zum Herrn der ganzen Erde. Danach vollzog er unter der Priesterschaft Māmateyas, des Sohnes Bhṛgus, fünfundfünfzig Aśvamedha am Ufer der Ganga und achtundsiebzig Aśvamedha am Ufer der Yamunā, von der Vereinigung bei Prayāga bis zur Quelle. Er errichtete das Opferfeuer an einem vortrefflichen Ort und schenkte den Brāhmaṇas großen Reichtum; so viele Kühe verteilte er, dass Tausende von Brāhmaṇas jeweils einen badva (13.084) als Anteil erhielten.
As indicated here by the words dauṣmanter agniḥ sācī-guṇe citaḥ, Bharata, the son of Mahārāja Duṣmanta, arranged for many ritualistic ceremonies all over the world, especially all over India on the banks of the Ganges and Yamunā, from the mouth to the source, and all such sacrifices were performed in very distinguished places. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (3.9) , yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ: “Work done as a sacrifice for Viṣṇu has to be performed; otherwise work binds one to this material world.” Everyone should engage in the performance of yajña, and the sacrificial fire should be ignited everywhere, the entire purpose being to make people happy, prosperous and progressive in spiritual life. Of course, these things were possible before the beginning of Kali-yuga because there were qualified brāhmaṇas who could perform such yajñas. For the present, however, the Brahma-vaivarta Purāṇa enjoins:
FAQs
This verse describes a king being worshiped through the mahābhiṣeka, the great consecration that formally establishes him as adhirāṭ (emperor) according to Vedic royal tradition.
Such emblems indicate divine sanction and auspicious rulership; the Bhagavatam highlights these signs to show the king’s extraordinary, empowered status.
Leadership should be grounded in sacred responsibility—accepting authority only with humility, proper sanction, and a duty to protect and uplift others.