Shloka 98
अनुक्रमणिकाध्यायः (Anukramaṇikā Adhyāya) — Invocation, Narrator Frame, and Textual Scope
शशास शिष्यमासीनं वैशम्पायनमन्तिके । ससदस्यै: सहासीन: श्रावयामास भारतम्
śaśāsa śiṣyam āsīnaṃ vaiśampāyanam antike | sa-sadasyaiḥ sahāsīnaḥ śrāvayāmāsa bhāratam ||
Seated with the assembled council, he instructed his disciple Vaiśampāyana, who sat nearby, and had him recite the Bhārata—thus setting the sacred history before the gathered listeners in an orderly, authoritative manner.
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical and cultural ideal of preserving and transmitting sacred history through disciplined instruction: a teacher authoritatively directs a qualified disciple to recite the tradition before an assembly, ensuring accuracy, continuity, and communal access to dharmic knowledge.
In the presence of an assembly, the presiding authority instructs the disciple Vaiśampāyana, seated nearby, to recite the Bhārata. This frames the Mahābhārata as a formally delivered recitation within a learned gathering.