Shloka 60
Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)
तस्मात् त्वमपि राजेन्द्र पूजयैनान् यथाविधि । अध्वनि क्षीणगात्रश्व पथि पांसुसमन्वित:
tasmāt tvam api rājendra pūjayainān yathāvidhi | adhvani kṣīṇagātraśva pathi pāṃsusamanvitaḥ ||
Therefore, O best of kings, you too should honor these (persons) in the proper manner. For on the journey—when the body and the horses are worn out, and the road is choked with dust—such due respect and right conduct become especially necessary.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse urges a king to practice dharma through proper, rule-based honor (pūjā) toward those deserving respect, especially when circumstances like travel fatigue test one’s patience and discipline.
Vaiśampāyana addresses a king, advising him to honor certain persons appropriately; the mention of an arduous, dusty journey with exhausted bodies and horses frames the counsel as practical guidance for conduct under strain.