Shloka 13
Vasiṣṭha–Karāla-Janaka Saṃvāda: Aśuddha-Sevana, Guṇa-Dr̥ṣṭi, and Sāṃkhya–Yoga Ekārthatā
Mahābhārata 12.293
अप्रणष्टे ततो धर्मे भवन्ति सुखिता: प्रजा: । सुखेन तासां राजेन्द्र मोदन्ते दिवि देवता:
apraṇaṣṭe tato dharme bhavanti sukhitāḥ prajāḥ | sukhena tāsāṃ rājendra modante divi devatāḥ ||
Parāśara said: When dharma is not allowed to perish, but is preserved and practiced, the people become happy and secure. O king, when the subjects live in well-being, even the gods in heaven rejoice—because the world below is being upheld by righteousness.
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The preservation and practice of dharma is the foundation of public welfare: when righteousness is maintained, the people flourish, and this harmony is reflected even in the divine realm—suggesting that moral governance sustains both society and cosmic order.
Parāśara is instructing a king (addressed as rājendra) on the consequences of upholding dharma: it leads to the happiness of the subjects, and that collective well-being is portrayed as pleasing even to the gods in heaven.