Shloka 111
Varṇa-dharma and Rājadharma: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Normative Outline (वर्णधर्म-राजधर्म-प्रश्नोत्तरम्)
मन्त्रिणो वालखिल्याश्ष सारस्वत्यो गणस्तथा । महर्षिर्भगवान् गर्गस्तस्य सांवत्सरो5भवत्
mantriṇo vālakhilyāś ca sārasvatyo gaṇas tathā | maharṣir bhagavān gargas tasya sāṁvatsaro 'bhavat ||
Wika ni Bhishma: “Ang mga rishi na Vālakhilya, at gayundin ang pangkat ng mga rishi na naninirahan sa pampang ng Sarasvatī, ang nagsilbing mga ministro niya. Ang kagalang-galang na dakilang rishi na si Garga ang naging ‘sāṁvatsara’ niya—ang astrologo ng korte at tagabilang ng taon.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Righteous governance is strengthened when a ruler relies on disciplined, learned sages for counsel and on competent experts (such as a jyotiṣa authority) for orderly regulation of time and ritual—showing that dharma in public life depends on wise advisors and proper institutions.
Bhishma describes the composition of a ruler’s court: the Vālakhilyas and the Sarasvatī-bank sages function as ministers, while the revered seer Garga serves as the court’s annual time-reckoner/astrologer (sāṁvatsara).