Shloka 27
Kośa, Bala, and Maryādā: Treasury, Capacity, and Enforceable Limits (कोश-बल-मर्यादा)
हन्तारं रक्षितारं च प्रजानां क्षत्रियं विदु: । तस्मात् संरक्षता कार्यमादान क्षत्रबन्धुना
hantāraṁ rakṣitāraṁ ca prajānāṁ kṣatriyaṁ viduḥ | tasmāt saṁrakṣatā kāryam ādānaṁ kṣatrabandhunā ||
Bhishma sprach: „Die Weisen wissen, dass der Kṣatriya dem Volk gegenüber zugleich Töter und Beschützer ist. Darum soll ein Kṣatriya—zumal einer, der nur dem Namen nach ein ‚Verwandter der Kṣatriyas‘ ist—Abgaben nur dann annehmen, wenn er die Untertanen tatsächlich und tatkräftig schützt.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler’s right to take wealth (taxes/dues) is morally conditional: it is justified only when he truly protects the people. Power includes the capacity to punish/kill, but it must be exercised under dharma for public safety.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhishma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira about the king’s responsibilities. Here he stresses that the kṣatriya is seen as both protector and destroyer, and therefore must accept revenue only while fulfilling the protective duty toward the subjects.