Shloka 6
ब्राह्मणपूजा-राजधर्मः | Royal Duty of Honoring Learned Brahmins
मनोर्महात्मनस्तात प्रजा धर्मेण शासत: । बभूव पुत्रो धर्मात्मा शर्यातिरिति विश्रुत:
manor mahātmanas tāta prajā dharmeṇa śāsataḥ | babhūva putro dharmātmā śaryātir iti viśrutaḥ ||
Bhishma said: “O dear one, to the great-souled Manu—who governed his subjects in accordance with dharma—there was born a righteous son, renowned by the name Śaryāti.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that a ruler’s legitimacy and success rest on governing the people through dharma—just, principled administration. Such dharmic kingship is portrayed as the foundation for righteous continuity in society and in royal lineage.
Bhishma is recounting an ancestral account: Manu, famed for ruling his subjects according to dharma, has a son born to him—Śaryāti—who is described as dharmātmā and widely renowned. This sets up a genealogical and moral context for the discussion.