Śiśupāla’s Protest Against the Arghya to Kṛṣṇa (शिशुपाल-आक्षेपः)
आज म्मु: पाण्डुपुत्रस्य राजसूयं महाक्रतुम् । ये तथा दूसरे भी बहुत-से-मध्यदेशीय नरेश पाण्डुनन्दन युधिष्ठिरके राजसूय महायज्ञमें सम्मिलित हुए थे
ājammiḥ pāṇḍuputrasya rājasūyaṃ mahākratum | ye tathā dvitīyā api bahavaḥ madhyadeśīyā nareśāḥ pāṇunandana yudhiṣṭhirasya rājasūya-mahāyajñe sammilitā abhavan |
वैशम्पायन उवाच—मध्यदेशीयाः बहवो नृपाः, अन्ये च बहवः सह, पाण्डुपुत्रस्य युधिष्ठिरस्य राजसूयं महाक्रतुं समागत्य तत्र समवर्तन्त।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse highlights that righteous kingship is not merely personal power but a publicly recognized moral and political order, affirmed through sacred ritual and the willing participation of other rulers.
Vaiśampāyana reports that many central-region kings and other rulers gathered to participate in Yudhiṣṭhira’s grand Rājasūya sacrifice, marking his rise to acknowledged imperial status.