Shloka 6
Śuka’s Guṇa-Transcendence and Vyāsa’s Consolation (शुकगति-वर्णनम्)
तस्य वेदविद: प्राज्ञा: श्रुत्वा तां साधुवृत्तताम् । लोकेषु स्पृहयन्त्यन्ये पुरुषा: पुरुषेश्वर
tasya vedavidaḥ prājñāḥ śrutvā tāṃ sādhuvṛttatām | lokeṣu spṛhayanty anye puruṣāḥ puruṣeśvara nareśvara ||
Bhishma said: “Hearing of his noble conduct, the wise—those learned in the Vedas—came to long for it; and other men in the world too desired to become virtuous like him, O lord of men, O king.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True virtue (sādhuvṛtta) has a contagious power: when people hear of exemplary conduct, even the learned and the wider public develop a desire to emulate it. Dharma is strengthened not only by instruction but by living examples that inspire imitation.
In Bhishma’s discourse to the king (Yudhiṣṭhira) in the Śānti Parva, he describes how reports of a certain person’s noble behavior spread. On hearing this, Veda-knowers and other people alike yearn to become similarly virtuous, highlighting the social reach of an individual’s righteous life.