Shloka 66
ब्राह्मणपूजा-राजधर्मः | Royal Duty of Honoring Learned Brahmins
एवं विप्रत्वमगमद् वीतहव्यो नराधिप: । भृगो: प्रसादादू राजेन्द्र क्षत्रिय: क्षत्रियर्षभ,राजेन्द्र! क्षत्रियशिरोमणे! इस प्रकार राजा वीतहव्य क्षत्रिय होकर भी भृगुके प्रसादसे ब्राह्मण हो गये
evaṁ vipratvam agamad vītahavyo narādhipaḥ | bhṛgoḥ prasādād rājendra kṣatriyaḥ kṣatriyarṣabha ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Ainsi le roi Vītahavya parvint au rang de brāhmane. Ô le meilleur des rois ! Bien qu’il fût kṣatriya—un taureau parmi les kṣatriya—par la grâce et la faveur de Bhṛgu, il devint brāhmane.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that status associated with varṇa can be portrayed as changeable through spiritual power and a sage’s grace; ethical-spiritual attainment and the favor of realized seers are presented as forces that can override mere birth-based identity.
Bhīṣma concludes a brief account about King Vītahavya, stating that although he was a kṣatriya, he attained brāhmaṇa-hood through the blessing (prasāda) of the sage Bhṛgu, and Bhīṣma addresses the listener respectfully as ‘rājendra’ and ‘kṣatriyarṣabha’.