SB 4.13.11 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

मत्वा तं जडमुन्मत्तं कुलवृद्धा: समन्त्रिण: । वत्सरं भूपतिं चक्रुर्यवीयांसं भ्रमे: सुतम् ॥ ११ ॥

Verse text

matvā taṁ jaḍam unmattaṁ kula-vṛddhāḥ samantriṇaḥ vatsaraṁ bhūpatiṁ cakrur yavīyāṁsaṁ bhrameḥ sutam

Synonyms

matvā — thinking ; tam — Utkala ; jaḍam — without intelligence ; unmattam — mad ; kula — vṛddhāḥ — the elderly members of the family ; samantriṇaḥ — with the ministers ; vatsaram — Vatsara ; bhū — patim — ruler of the world ; cakruḥ — they made ; yavīyāṁsam — younger ; bhrameḥ — of Bhrami ; sutam — son .

Translation

For this reason the ministers and all the elderly members of the family thought Utkala to be without intelligence and, in fact, mad. Thus his younger brother, named Vatsara, the son of Bhrami, was elevated to the royal throne, and he became king of the world.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Thinking that Utkala was retarded or mad, the elders of the dynasty along with the ministers enthroned Vatsara, his younger brother, the son of Bhrami, as the King.

Purport

It appears that although there was monarchy, it was not at all an autocracy. There were senior family members and ministers who could make changes and elect the proper person to the throne, although the throne could be occupied only by the royal family. In modern days also, wherever there is monarchy, sometimes the ministers and elderly members of the family select one member from the royal family to occupy the throne in preference to another.