Shloka 54
Sūrya-stava: Dhaumya’s Counsel and the Aṣṭaśata-nāma of Sūrya
आधानपशुबन्न्धेष्टिमन्त्रयज्ञतपःक्रिया: । त्वत्प्रसादादवाप्यन्ते ब्रह्म॒क्षत्रविशां गणै:,गर्भाधान या अग्निकी स्थापना, पशुओंको बाँधना, इष्टि (पूजा), मन्त्र, यज्ञानुष्ठान और तप आदि समस्त क्रियाएँ आपकी ही कृपासे ब्राह्मण, क्षत्रिय और वैश्यगणों द्वारा सम्पन्न की जाती हैं
ādhāna-paśu-bandheṣṭi-mantra-yajña-tapaḥ-kriyāḥ | tvat-prasādād avāpyante brahma-kṣatra-viśāṁ gaṇaiḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “The rites of conception, the binding of sacrificial animals, iṣṭi-offerings, the use of sacred mantras, the performance of yajñas, and the disciplines of tapas—indeed all such religious acts—are accomplished by the communities of brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, and vaiśyas only through your grace. Thus, the very functioning of dharma in society depends upon the divine favor that enables right action.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
That dharmic action—especially Vedic rites and disciplines—requires more than human effort; it is ultimately enabled by divine grace. The verse frames ritual competence and ethical order as dependent on a higher sanction, encouraging humility and devotion alongside duty.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses a revered divine or spiritually authoritative addressee, acknowledging that the major rites and religious practices performed by the principal social orders are successfully carried out only through that being’s favor, thereby affirming the dependence of societal dharma on transcendent support.