Shloka 19
यमङ्ग शेपु: कुपिता वाग्वज्रा मुनय: किल । गतासोस्तस्य भूयस्ते ममन्थुर्दक्षिणं करम् ॥ १९ ॥ अराजके तदा लोके दस्युभि: पीडिता: प्रजा: । जातो नारायणांशेन पृथुराद्य: क्षितीश्वर: ॥ २० ॥
yam aṅga śepuḥ kupitā vāg-vajrā munayaḥ kila gatāsos tasya bhūyas te mamanthur dakṣiṇaṁ karam
O Vidura, the curse spoken by great sages is irresistible, like a thunderbolt. Thus, when in anger they cursed King Vena, he died. After his death, with no king, thieves and rogues flourished; the realm fell into disorder and the people suffered greatly. Seeing this, the sages churned Vena’s right hand as a churning rod, and from that churning Lord Viṣṇu, as an aṁśa of Nārāyaṇa, manifested as King Pṛthu, the first emperor of the world.
Monarchy is better than democracy because if the monarchy is very strong the regulative principles within the kingdom are upheld very nicely. Even one hundred years ago in the state of Kashmir in India, the king was so strong that if a thief were arrested in his kingdom and brought before him, the king would immediately chop off the hands of the thief. As a result of this severe punishment there were practically no theft cases within the kingdom. Even if someone left something on the street, no one would touch it. The rule was that the things could be taken away only by the proprietor and that no one else would touch them. In the so-called democracy, wherever there is a theft case the police come and take note of the case, but generally the thief is never caught, nor is any punishment offered to him. As a result of incapable government, at the present moment thieves, rogues and cheaters are very prominent all over the world.
FAQs
Because Vena opposed dharma and offended saintly authority; the sages, to protect religious order, used their brahminical power to punish him.
It refers to a miraculous, divinely empowered act by which the sages extracted a qualified ruler from Vena’s body—preparing for the appearance of King Pṛthu.
Leadership must align with dharma and respect saintly wisdom; arrogance and hostility toward virtue lead to downfall.