Shloka 6
दुर्ग-निवेश-राजधर्मः | Fortified Capital and the King’s Residential Polity
Rājadharma
यत्पुरं दुर्गसम्पन्नं धान्न्यायुधसमन्वितम् । दृढप्राकारपरिखं हस्त्यश्वरथसंकुलम्
yat puraṁ durgasampannaṁ dhānyāyudhasamanvitam | dṛḍhaprākāraparikhaṁ hasty-aśva-ratha-saṅkulam ||
যি নগৰ দুৰ্গ-সুবিধাৰে সমৃদ্ধ, ধান্য আৰু অস্ত্ৰ-শস্ত্ৰে সজ্জিত, দৃঢ় প্ৰাকাৰ আৰু পৰিখাৰে সুৰক্ষিত, আৰু হাতী-ঘোঁৰা-ৰথে পৰিপূৰ্ণ—সেই নগৰেই (ৰাজধানী) বুলি বৰ্ণিত।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
In the context of Rajadharma, Bhishma highlights that a ruler’s duty to protect depends on practical preparedness: secure fortifications, adequate provisions, and organized military resources. Ethical governance is not merely intention; it requires structures that prevent harm to subjects.
Bhishma is describing the features of an ideal, well-defended capital—forts, supplies, weapons, walls, moats, and war animals/vehicles—within his broader instruction to Yudhishthira in Shanti Parva on how a king should organize and safeguard the realm.