Shloka 486
प्रभुत्वं लभते चापि धर्मस्यैतत् फल विदु: । सज्जनशिरोमणे! धर्मात्मा पुरुष शब्द, स्पर्श, रूप और प्रिय गन्ध--सभी प्रकारके विषय तथा प्रभुत्व भी प्राप्त करता है। उसकी यह स्थिति धर्मका ही फल मानी गयी है
prabhutvaṃ labhate cāpi dharmasyaitat phalaṃ viduḥ | sajjanaśiromaṇe! dharmātmā puruṣaḥ śabda-sparśa-rūpa-priya-gandhān sarvān viṣayān tathā prabhutvam api prāpnoti | tasya eṣā sthitir dharmasyaiva phalaṃ manyate |
The hunter said: ‘Know that sovereignty too is a fruit of dharma. O best among the virtuous! A righteous man attains all desirable objects of sense—sound, touch, form, and pleasing fragrance—and he also gains authority and lordship. This condition of his is regarded as nothing other than the result of dharma.’
व्याध उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that dharma is not merely an abstract virtue: it bears tangible results. Even worldly attainments—prosperity, enjoyable sense-objects, and social or political authority—are presented as legitimate fruits of righteousness when grounded in a dharmic life.
In the Vana Parva’s dialogue associated with the hunter-teacher (Vyādha), the speaker instructs his listener using ethical reasoning. Here he emphasizes that the elevated condition of a dharmic person—enjoyments and even lordship—is understood by the wise as arising from dharma’s merit.