Shloka 1
राजधर्मप्रश्नः — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry into Rājadharma (Śānti-parva 56)
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vaiśampāyana uvāca | praṇipatya hṛṣīkeśam abhivādya pitāmaham | anumānya gurūn sarvān paryapṛcchad yudhiṣṭhiraḥ ||
ವೈಶಂಪಾಯನನು ಹೇಳಿದನು—ರಾಜನೇ! ನಂತರ ಯುಧಿಷ್ಠಿರನು ಹೃಷೀಕೇಶನಾದ ಶ್ರೀಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೆ ನಮಸ್ಕರಿಸಿ, ಪಿತಾಮಹ ಭೀಷ್ಮನಿಗೆ ವಂದನೆ ಸಲ್ಲಿಸಿ, ಅಲ್ಲಿದ್ದ ಎಲ್ಲ ಗುರುಜನರ ಅನುಮತಿ ಪಡೆದು ಹೀಗೆ ಪ್ರಶ್ನಿಸಿದನು.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Before seeking guidance on statecraft and dharma, the king must approach knowledge with humility, proper respect to spiritual and moral authorities, and with the community of elders’ consent—signaling that righteous rule begins with disciplined inquiry and reverence.
Vaiśampāyana narrates that Yudhiṣṭhira bows to Kṛṣṇa and Bhīṣma, receives the approval of the assembled elders, and then formally asks his question—setting the stage for Bhīṣma’s discourse on rajadharma in the Shānti Parva.