Shloka 88
वृषो हि भगवान् धर्म: ख्यातो लोकेषु भारत । नैधण्टुकपदाख्याने विद्धि मां वृषमुत्तमम्,भरतनन्दन! भगवान् धर्म सम्पूर्ण लोकोंमें वृषके नामसे विख्यात हैं। वैदिक शब्दार्थथोधक कोशमें वृषका अर्थ धर्म बताया गया है; अतः उत्तम धर्मस्वरूप मुझ वासुदेवको “वृष! समझो
vṛṣo hi bhagavān dharmaḥ khyāto lokeṣu bhārata | naidhāṇṭuka-padākhyāne viddhi māṃ vṛṣam uttamam bharatanandana ||
वृषो हि भगवान् धर्मः ख्यातो लोकेषु भारत। नैघण्टुकपदाख्याने विद्धि मां वृषमुत्तमम्॥
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.