सुखोपविष्टेष्वथ तेषु भूयः कृतप्रणामः स्वचिकीर्षितं यत् ।
विज्ञापयामास विविक्तचेता उपस्थितोऽग्रेऽभिगृहीतपाणिः ॥१२॥

sukhopaviṣṭeṣv atha teṣu bhūyaḥ
ká¹›ta-praṇÄmaḥ sva-cikÄ«rá¹£itaá¹ yat
vijñÄpayÄm Äsa vivikta-cetÄ
upasthito 'gre 'bhigá¹›hÄ«ta-pÄṇiḥ

 sukha - happily; upaviṣṭeá¹£u - all sitting down; atha - thereupon; teá¹£u - unto them (the visitors); bhÅ«yaḥ - again; ká¹›ta-praṇÄmaḥ - having offered obeisances; sva - his own; cikÄ«rá¹£itam - decision of fasting; yat - who; vijñÄpayÄm Äsa - submitted; vivikta-cetÄḥ - one whose mind is detached from worldly affairs; upasthitaḥ - being present; agre - before them; abhigá¹›hÄ«ta-pÄṇiḥ - humbly with folded hands.


Text

After all the ṛṣis and others had seated themselves comfortably, the King, humbly standing before them with folded hands, told them of his decision to fast until death.

Purport

Although the King had already decided to fast until death on the bank of the Ganges, he humbly expressed his decision to elicit the opinions of the great authorities present there. Any important decision, however firmly fixed, should be confirmed by some authority. That makes the matter perfect. This means that the monarchs who ruled the earth in those days were not irresponsible dictators. They scrupulously followed the authoritative decisions of the saints and sages in terms of Vedic injunction. MahÄrÄja ParÄ«ká¹£it, as a perfect king, followed the principles by consulting the authorities, even up to the last days of his life.