Shloka 88
Atithi-satkāra and the Consolation of Wise Counsel (अतिथिसत्कारः प्रज्ञानवचनस्य च पराश्वासनम्)
वृषो हि भगवान् धर्म: ख्यातो लोकेषु भारत । नैधण्टुकपदाख्याने विद्धि मां वृषमुत्तमम्
vṛṣo hi bhagavān dharmaḥ khyāto lokeṣu bhārata | naidhāṇṭuka-padākhyāne viddhi māṃ vṛṣam uttamam bharatanandana ||
ಓ ಭಾರತ! ಭಗವಾನ್ ಧರ್ಮವು ಲೋಕಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ‘ವೃಷ’ (ಎತ್ತು) ಎಂಬ ಹೆಸರಿನಿಂದ ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧ. ನೈಘಂಟುಕ (ವೈದಿಕ ಪದಾರ್ಥ-ನಿಘಂಟು) ಪ್ರಕಾರ ‘ವೃಷ’ ಎಂಬ ಪದಕ್ಕೆ ಧರ್ಮವೆಂದೇ ಅರ್ಥ; ಆದ್ದರಿಂದ, ಓ ಭರತನಂದನ, ನನ್ನನ್ನು ‘ವೃಷ’—ಧರ್ಮದ ಪರಮ ಸ್ವರೂಪ—ಎಂದು ತಿಳಿ.
तामिन्द्र उवाच गच्छ नहुषस्त्वया वाच्योथ<पूर्वेण मामृषियुक्तेन यानेन त्वमधिरूढ
Educational Q&A
The verse equates the epithet “Vṛṣa” (bull) with Dharma, asserting that true strength and nobility are moral: Dharma is the world-sustaining power, and the speaker identifies himself as the supreme form of that Dharma.
In a didactic context within Śānti Parva, the speaker explains a significant epithet by appealing to Vedic lexical tradition (Naighaṇṭuka/Nighaṇṭu), clarifying that “vṛṣa” is not merely an animal image but a recognized synonym for Dharma, thereby grounding his self-description in authoritative word-meaning.