Shloka 26
राजपूजाविधानम् / Royal Reception Protocols during Āśvamedha Preparations
नाषडडज्विदत्रासीत् सदस्यस्तस्य धीमत: । नाव्रतो नानुपाध्यायो न च वादाविचक्षण:
Vaiśampāyana uvāca |
nāṣaḍaṅgavid atrāsīt sadasyas tasya dhīmataḥ |
nāvrato nānupādhyāyo na ca vādāvicakṣaṇaḥ ||
ವೈಶಂಪಾಯನನು ಹೇಳಿದರು—ಆ ಧೀಮಂತ ರಾಜನ ಯಜ್ಞಸಭೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ವೇದದ ಷಡಂಗಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಪಾಂಡಿತ್ಯವಿಲ್ಲದ ಸದಸ್ಯನೊಬ್ಬನೂ ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ; ವ್ರತವಿಲ್ಲದವರೂ ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ; ಅಧ್ಯಾಪನದಲ್ಲಿ ಅಕುಶಲರೂ ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ; ವಾದವಿವಾದದಲ್ಲಿ ಅಪ್ರವೀಣರೂ ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ritual and public religious acts should be supported by integrity and competence: learning (mastery of Vedāṅgas), self-restraint (vrata), the ability to teach, and clarity in debate. Dharma is presented as a union of knowledge and conduct, not mere ceremony.
During Yudhiṣṭhira’s Aśvamedha-related proceedings, the narrator emphasizes the exceptional quality of the sacrificial assembly: every participant is portrayed as fully qualified—learned in Vedic auxiliaries, disciplined in vows, capable as an instructor, and adept in disputation.