Shloka 16
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 148: Vāsudeva’s Report—Mobilization and the Nīti Sequence
Sāma–Bheda–Daṇḍa
देवापिरभवच्छेष्ठो बाह्लीकस्तदनन्तरम् । तृतीय: शान्तनुस्तात धृतिमान् मे पितामह:,“तात! उन तीनोंमें सबसे श्रेष्ठ थे देवापि। उनके बादवाले राजकुमारका नाम बाह्नीक था तथा प्रतीपके तीसरे पुत्र मेरे धैर्यवान् पितामह शान्तनु थे
devāpir abhavac chreṣṭho bāhlīkas tadanantaram | tṛtīyaḥ śāntanus tāta dhṛtimān me pitāmahaḥ ||
Vāyu dit : « Parmi ces trois-là, Devāpi était le plus éminent. Après lui venait le prince nommé Bāhlīka. Le troisième — ô mon cher — était Śāntanu, mon aïeul, ferme et constant. »
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights ethical valuation within royal lineage: true eminence is linked with virtue and steadiness (dhṛti). By calling Devāpi ‘the best’ and Śāntanu ‘steadfast,’ it frames kingship as grounded in character, not merely birth order.
Vāyu is recounting a genealogical sequence of three brothers/princes, ranking Devāpi as foremost, naming Bāhlīka as next, and identifying Śāntanu as the third—described as Vāyu’s own grandfather—thereby situating later figures within the Kuru dynastic history.