तान् महर्षिगणान् सर्वाञ् शिरोभिर् अभिवाद्य च ॥
उपोपविविशुः सर्वे कौरव्याः सपुरोहिताः ॥
तथैव शिरसा भूमाव् अभिवाद्य प्रणम्य च ॥
उपोपविविशुः सर्वे पौरजानपदा अपि ॥
तम् अकूजम् इवाज्ञाय जनौघं सर्वशस् तदा ॥
भीष्मो राज्यं च राष्ट्रं च महर्षिभ्यो न्यवेदयत् ॥
tān maharṣigaṇān sarvāñ śirobhir abhivādya ca ||
upopaviviśuḥ sarve kauravyāḥ sapurohitāḥ ||
tathaiva śirasā bhūmāv abhivādya praṇamya ca ||
upopaviviśuḥ sarve paurajānapadā api ||
tam akūjam ivājñāya janaughaṃ sarvaśas tadā ||
bhīṣmo rājyaṃ ca rāṣṭraṃ ca maharṣibhyo nyavedayat ||
"Having bowed their heads to those hosts of great sages, all the Kauravas together with their priests sat down nearby; likewise, having touched the ground with their heads, bowed, and prostrated, all the townspeople and villagers sat down as well. Perceiving that the whole crowd had fallen silent everywhere, Bhishma then offered the kingdom and the realm to the great sages."
352b69099116 · publicado 12 jul 2026, 16:41:49 UTC
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Here Bhishma shows the highest measure of hospitality, offering the holy guests the kingdom itself. Telling is that the sages are offered not mere gifts but "the kingdom and the realm": before holiness, earthly power is as nothing, and the king stands ready to lay it at the feet of the ascetics. Here is the ideal relation of power to the holy: a ruler is not master over brahmins but their humble servant, ready to give everything. Telling too is the reverent silence of the people: when the saints speak, the crowd falls quiet, attentive. Thus scripture shows the due honor owed to the assembly of sages, before the eldest of them speaks the news of Pandu's birth and death.