508
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 1, Ch. 9]
in her actions she was a great ascetic. Besides that, the shock which she suffered because of the wholesale killing of her one hundred sons and her grandsons also was certainly too much for a woman. But she suffered all this just like an ascetic. Gāndhārī, although a woman, is no less than Bhīṣmadeva in character. They are both remarkable personalities in the  Mahābhārata .
TEXT 49
पित्रा चानुमतो राजा वासुदेवानुमोदितः । 
  चकार राज्यं धर्मेण पितृपैतामहं विभुः ॥४९॥
pitrā cānumato rājā 
  vāsudevānumoditaḥ 
  cakāra rājyam dharmeṇa 
  pitṛ paitāmaham vibhuḥ
pitrā —by his uncle, Dhṛtarāṣṭra;  ca —and;  anumataḥ —with his approval;  rājā —King Yudhiṣṭhira;  vāsudeva-anumoditaḥ —confirmed by Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa;  cakāra —executed;  rājyam —the kingdom;  dharmeṇa —in compliance with the codes of royal principles;  pitṛ —father;  paitāmaham —forefather;  vibhuḥ —as great as.
TRANSLATION
After this, the great religious King, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, executed the royal power in the kingdom strictly according to the codes and royal principles which were approved by his uncle and confirmed by Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
PURPORT
Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was not a mere tax collector. He was always conscious of his duty as a king, which is no less than that of a father or spiritual master. The king is to see to the welfare of the citizens from all angles of social, political, economic and spiritual upliftment. The king must know that human life is meant for liberating the encaged soul from the bondage of material conditions, and therefore his duty is to see that the citizens are properly looked after to attain this highest stage of perfection.