Shloka 7
Āṇīmāṇḍavya–Upākhyāna
The Account of Āṇīmāṇḍavya and the Birth of Vidura
वर्तमान हि धर्मेषु सर्वधर्मभूतां वरम् । त॑ महीपा महीपालं राजराज्ये5भ्यषेचयन्,वे धर्ममें सदा स्थिर रहनेवाले और सम्पूर्ण धर्मात्माओंमें श्रेष्ठ थे; अतः समस्त राजाओंने मिलकर राजा शान्तनुको राजराजेश्वर (सम्राट)-के पदपर अभिषिक्त कर दिया
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: vartamānaḥ hi dharmeṣu sarvadharmabhūtānāṃ varam; taṃ mahīpā mahīpālaṃ rājarājye 'bhiṣecayan.
Dijo Vaiśampāyana: Siempre firme en los caminos del dharma y el primero entre todos los justos, fue por ello ungido por los reyes reunidos—guardianes de la tierra—como rey de reyes, soberano imperial.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links sovereignty with dharma: the highest political status is portrayed as properly conferred upon one who is steadfast in righteousness and recognized as ethically superior by the community of rulers.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that the kings collectively consecrate Śāntanu as an imperial ruler (rājarājya), because he is described as firm in dharma and the foremost among the righteous.