Shloka 21
Vidurā–Putra Saṃvāda: Utsāha, Kīrti, and Kṣātra Resolve
Udyoga-parva 131
राजधर्मानवेक्षस्व पितृपैतामहोचितान् । नैतद् राजर्षिवत्तं हि यत्र त्वं स्थातुमिच्छसि,बेटा! तुम्हारे पिता-पितामहोंने जिनका पालन किया है, उन राजधर्मोंकी ओर ही देखो। तुम जिसका आश्रय लेना चाहते हो, वह राजर्षियोंका आचार अथवा राजवधर्म नहीं है
rājadharmān avekṣasva pitṛpaitāmaho-citān | naitad rājārṣi-vṛttaṃ hi yatra tvaṃ sthātum icchasi ||
Vāyu said: “Look instead to the duties of kings—those honored and upheld by your father and forefathers. The course you wish to take is not the conduct of royal sages; it is not the true dharma of kingship.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler should align his choices with rājadharma—the time-tested, proper standards of kingship upheld by his lineage—rather than adopting a course that departs from the ethical conduct associated with rājārṣis (ideal dharmic kings).
Vāyu addresses the listener with a corrective warning, urging him to reconsider his intended stance and to follow the established royal code practiced by his father and ancestors, implying that the contemplated action is unworthy of dharmic kingship.