Shloka 15
Draupadī’s Lament and the Question of Kṣatriya Forbearance (द्रौपद्याः शोकप्रलापः क्षमानिर्णयश्च)
तथा च नित्यमुदिता यदि नाल्पमपीश्वरात् | दण्डमर्हन्ति दुष्यन्ति दुष्टाश्चाप्पपकुर्वते,यदि उन्हें अपने स्वामीसे तनिक भी दण्ड नहीं मिलता तो वे सदा मौज उड़ाती हैं और आचारसे दूषित हो जाती हैं। दुष्टा होनेपर वे अपने स्वामीका अपकार भी कर बैठती हैं
tathā ca nityam uditā yadi nālpam apīśvarāt | daṇḍam arhanti duṣyanti duṣṭāś cāpakurvate ||
وكذلك، إذا لم ينالوا من سيدهم أدنى تأديبٍ ولو يسيرًا، ظلّوا أبدًا في لهوٍ وانغماسٍ في الشهوات، فتفسد سيرتهم. فإذا استحكم فيهم الشرّ، ربما أقدموا حتى على الإضرار بسيدهم نفسه.
प्रह्माद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that when authority never applies even mild corrective discipline, people become complacent, their conduct deteriorates, and they may even turn harmful toward the very authority that indulges them. Proper daṇḍa is presented as a safeguard for dharma and social order.
Prahmāda is articulating a principle of governance and household/social management: the absence of restraint or punishment from a superior (īśvara) leads dependents to moral laxity and eventual wrongdoing, including betrayal or harm to the superior.