Shloka 14

Kośa, Bala, and Maryādā: Treasury, Capacity, and Enforceable Limits (कोश-बल-मर्यादा)

Devanagari script

अन्यो धर्म: समर्थानामापत्स्वन्यक्षु भारत । प्राकुकोशात्‌ प्राप्यते धर्मो वृत्तिर्धर्मादू गरीयसी

Transliteration

anyo dharmaḥ samarthānām āpatsu anyakṣu bhārata | prāk kośāt prāpyate dharmo vṛttir dharmād garīyasī bhārata ||

Translation

Bhīṣma sprach: „O Bharata, der Dharma für die Tüchtigen ist das eine, und der Dharma für die vom Unglück Getroffenen das andere. Darum gewinnt ein König erst dann wirklich die Gelegenheit, den Dharma zu wahren, wenn er zuvor die Schatzkammer gesichert hat; denn in drängender Not können die Mittel zur Erhaltung des Lebens und zum Funktionieren des Reiches dem Dharma an Priorität vorausgehen.“

Word by Word

• {'anyaḥ': 'other, different', 'dharmaḥ': 'duty

• moral law', 'samarthānām': 'of the capable/competent (persons)', 'āpatsu': 'in calamities, in times of distress', 'anyakṣu': 'different (rules) in other (conditions)

• i.e., dharma varies by circumstance', 'bhārata': 'O Bharata (address to Yudhiṣṭhira)', 'prāk': 'first, beforehand', 'kośāt / kośa': 'treasury

• stored resources', 'prāpyate': 'is obtained, is attained, becomes available', 'vṛttiḥ': 'livelihood

• practical sustenance', 'dharmāt': 'than dharma

• from dharma (ablative of comparison)', 'garīyasī': 'heavier, weightier, more important'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Bharata (Yudhiṣṭhira)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Dharma is context-sensitive: in normal conditions the capable should follow higher standards, but in calamity (āpada) different allowances apply. For a king, securing resources (kośa) and ensuring livelihood/maintenance (vṛtti) is a prerequisite for stable dharma-governance; without sustenance and revenue, righteous administration cannot be effectively practiced.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on kingship and ethics, Bhīṣma advises Yudhiṣṭhira (addressed as ‘Bhārata’) about practical governance. He explains that a ruler must first ensure the treasury and the people’s maintenance, especially in crisis, because the functioning of the kingdom and survival needs condition how dharma can be applied.