Shloka 77
संहितापुस्तकान् राजन् प्रयतः सुसमाहित:ः । भक्ष्यैमल्यैश्न पेयैश्व कामैश्न विविधै: शुभ:
saṁhitāpustakān rājan prayataḥ susamāhitaḥ | bhakṣyaiḥ mālyaiś ca peyaiś ca kāmaiś ca vividhaiḥ śubhaiḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : «Ô Roi, avec maîtrise de soi et l’esprit parfaitement recueilli, on doit honorer comme il convient les livres compilés des saṁhitā. En offrant mets choisis, guirlandes, boissons et autres dons de bon augure et désirables, on doit les adorer avec une attention concentrée et purifiée.»
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches reverence for sacred learning: texts are to be approached with bodily and mental purity, steady attention, and generous offerings—treating knowledge as a living object of dharma rather than mere material property.
Vaiśampāyana instructs the king on the proper, ritualized honoring of the Mahābhārata’s compiled books (saṁhitās): with disciplined focus, one offers food, garlands, drinks, and other auspicious gifts as part of a formal worship of the manuscripts/recensions.