Shloka 70
Atithi-prāpti and the Brāhmaṇa’s Deliberation on Triadic Dharma (अतिथिप्राप्तिः धर्मत्रयविचारश्च)
एते वेदविदो मुख्या वेदाचार्याश्व कल्पिता: । प्रवृत्तिधर्मिणश्वैव प्राजापत्ये च कल्पिता:
ete vedavido mukhyā vedācāryāś ca kalpitāḥ | pravṛttidharmiṇaś caiva prājāpatye ca kalpitāḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “These foremost knowers of the Veda are indeed regarded as Vedic teachers. Being adherents of the dharma of active engagement (pravṛtti), they are also deemed established in the Prajāpati-principle (the procreative, world-sustaining order).”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse affirms that true Veda-knowers, especially those who uphold pravṛtti-dharma (responsible action in society), are to be recognized as authoritative Vedic teachers and as aligned with the Prajāpati-oriented order that sustains creation and social continuity.
Vaiśampāyana, in the didactic discourse of the Śānti Parva, classifies and honors a group of learned persons: they are identified as foremost Veda-knowers, acknowledged as Vedic preceptors, and described as established in the Prajāpati principle—emphasizing their role in maintaining worldly and ritual order through active duty.