Shloka 11536
Varṇa-dharma and Rājadharma: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Normative Outline (वर्णधर्म-राजधर्म-प्रश्नोत्तरम्)
धनुष्कोट्या महाराज तेन शैला विवर्धिता: । महाराज! सभी मन्वन्तरोंमें यह पृथ्वी ऊँची-नीची हो जाती है; उस समय वेनकुमार पृथुने धनुषकी कोटिद्वारा चारों ओरसे शिलासमूहोंको उखाड़ डाला और उन्हें एक स्थानपर संचित कर दिया; इसीलिये पर्वतोंकी लम्बाई
dhanurkoṭyā mahārāja tena śailā vivardhitāḥ | mahārāja! sarveṣu manvantareṣu iyaṃ pṛthivī ūncī-nīcī bhavati; tadā venakumāraḥ pṛthuḥ dhanurkoṭyā samantataḥ śilāsaṃghān utkhāṭya ekasmin sthāne saṃcicāya; tasmāt parvatānāṃ lambatā vistāraś ca ucchrayas ca vivardhata iti |
Bhīṣma disse: “Ó grande rei, pela própria ponta de seu arco, as montanhas foram feitas crescer. Em cada Manvantara, esta terra torna-se irregular—em alguns lugares se eleva, em outros afunda. Então Pṛthu, filho de Vena, arrancou massas de rochas por todos os lados com a ponta do arco e as reuniu num só lugar. Por isso aumentaram o comprimento, a largura e a altura das montanhas.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A righteous king’s role is to restore order and stability when the world becomes disordered—even on a cosmic scale. Prithu exemplifies proactive governance: using power as a tool to reorganize nature for the common good, not for personal gain.
Bhishma explains that across different Manvantaras the earth becomes uneven. In such a period, King Prithu, son of Vena, uproots scattered rock-masses with the tip of his bow and piles them together, which results in mountains becoming larger in length, breadth, and height.