Shloka 29
Bhīṣma on the Śara-Śayyā: Yudhiṣṭhira and Kṛṣṇa Approach the Eldest for Śānti
त्वं हि सर्वगुणै राजन् देवानप्यतिरिच्यसे । तपसा हि भवान् शक्तः स्रष्टें लोकां क्षराचरान्
tvaṁ hi sarvaguṇai rājann devān apy atiricyase | tapasā hi bhavān śaktaḥ sraṣṭuṁ lokān carācarān ||
वैशम्पायन उवाच— त्वं हि सर्वगुणै राजन् देवानप्यतिरिच्यसे । तपसा हि भवान् शक्तः स्रष्टुं लोकान् चराचरान् ॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse elevates tapas (disciplined austerity) and guṇa (virtue) as real sources of authority: moral and spiritual excellence can surpass even divine status, implying that ethical self-mastery empowers a ruler more than mere birth or force.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction-oriented setting, Vaiśaṃpāyana praises a king addressed directly, emphasizing that his virtues and ascetic discipline are so great that he could metaphorically (or by yogic power) create the animate and inanimate worlds—an exhortation to uphold dharma through self-control.