Shloka 9
राज्ञोऽभिषेकः, अराजकदोषः, दण्डधारणस्य आवश्यकता
Royal Consecration, the Fault of Kinglessness, and the Necessity of Enforcement
लोकमुख्येषु सत्कारं लिज्ञलिमुख्येषु चासकृत् । कुर्वतस्तस्य कौन्तेय वन्याश्रमपदं भवेत्
lokamukhyeṣu satkāraṁ liṅgimukhyeṣu cāsakṛt | kurvatas tasya kaunteya vanyāśramapadaṁ bhavet ||
毗湿摩说：噢，昆蒂之子啊，若有人屡屡并恒常地向世间最卓越之人、以及诸修行者中最上者致以敬礼与恭敬的款待，便能获得与林居期（vānaprastha）同等的精神位阶与功德。此教示在于：对贤德之人——尤其对清净与出离者——真诚而持续的敬奉，即使身处世间，也能结出苦行生活之果。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Continual respectful honour (satkāra) offered to the truly worthy—especially eminent people of virtue and eminent ascetics—can confer the same merit and spiritual standing associated with the vānaprastha (forest-dweller) āśrama. Dharma is shown here as attainable through sustained reverence and service, not only through physical withdrawal to the forest.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct after the war. In this verse he explains that honoring leading virtuous persons and foremost renunciants repeatedly brings the fruits of the forest-ascetic stage, emphasizing social ethics and reverence as a path to spiritual gain.