Shloka 35
ब्राह्मणपूजा-राजधर्मः | Royal Duty of Honoring Learned Brahmins
त॑ दृष्टवा परमं हर्ष सुदेवतनयो ययौ । मेने च मनसा दग्धान् वैतहव्यान् स पार्थिव:
taṁ dṛṣṭvā paramaṁ harṣaṁ sudevatanayo yayau | mene ca manasā dagdhān vaitahavyān sa pārthivaḥ ||
Seeing this, the king Divodāsa, son of Sudeva, was filled with supreme joy and departed with a heart uplifted. In his mind he deemed the sons of Vītahavya as already burned up—overpowered and consumed by the splendor and prowess of his own son.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a king’s inner certainty and the moral psychology of power: confidence rooted in one’s lineage and the perceived prowess of one’s heir can make opponents seem already defeated. It implicitly points to how mental resolve and reputation shape ethical and political action in royal conflicts.
Bhīṣma narrates that Divodāsa, delighted by what he has witnessed, departs. He inwardly concludes that Vītahavya’s sons are as good as destroyed—figuratively ‘burned’—by the brilliance and strength of Divodāsa’s own son.