Shloka 79
Daṇḍanīti and the King as the Cause of Yuga-Order (दण्डनीतिः राजधर्मश्च युगकारणत्वम्)
कालो वा कारणं राज्ञो राजा वा कालकारणम् | इति ते संशयो मा भूद् राजा कालस्य कारणम्,काल राजाका कारण है अथवा राजा कालका, ऐसा संशय तुम्हें नहीं होना चाहिये। यह निश्चित है कि राजा ही कालका कारण होता है
kālo vā kāraṇaṁ rājño rājā vā kāla-kāraṇam | iti te saṁśayo mā bhūd rājā kālasya kāraṇam ||
কাল রাজাকে সৃষ্টি করে, না রাজাই কালের কারণ—এ বিষয়ে তোমার সন্দেহ যেন না থাকে। নিশ্চিত জেনে রাখো, রাজাই কালের কারণ হয়ে ওঠে।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes moral and practical agency in rulership: do not hide behind ‘Time’ or fate. In the sphere of polity, the king’s decisions and conduct function as the decisive cause that shapes outcomes—what people later call ‘Time’ is often the ruler’s agency made visible.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhīṣma addresses the listener’s doubt about whether events are driven by impersonal Time or by the ruler. He resolves it by asserting the primacy of royal responsibility: the king is the effective cause behind the unfolding of public fortune and misfortune.