तां च धर्मेण सम्प्राप्प पालयेयमतन्द्रित: । चतुर्थ तु वरं याचे त्वामहं द्विजसत्तम
bhīṣma uvāca | tāṃ ca dharmeṇa samprāpya pālayeyam atandritaḥ | caturthaṃ tu varaṃ yāce tvām ahaṃ dvijasattama ||
Бхишма сказал: «Обретя это (землю/верховную власть) по дхарме, я буду хранить её без небрежения. И всё же, о лучший из брахманов, прошу у тебя и четвёртый дар».
भीष्म उवाच
Legitimate power must be acquired and exercised through dharma, and once obtained it must be protected with constant vigilance (atandrita). Ethical governance is presented as a duty, not merely a privilege.
The speaker declares that after righteously attaining sovereignty (implied ‘the earth/kingdom’), he will govern it diligently; then he turns to the revered Brahmin and asks for an additional, fourth boon beyond the earlier requests.