Shloka 143
आपद्धर्मनिर्णयः — विश्वामित्र-श्वपचसंवादः
Apaddharma Determination: Dialogue of Viśvāmitra and the Śvapaca
यो विश्वसिति मित्रेषु न विश्वसिति शत्रुषु । अर्थयुक्तिमविज्ञाय य: प्रीती कुरुते मन:
yo viśvasiti mitreṣu na viśvasiti śatruṣu | arthayuktim avijñāya yaḥ prītiṃ kurute manaḥ ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „Wer unter Freunden Vertrauen setzt und Feinden nicht vertraut, dabei jedoch, ohne die wahre Logik von Nutzen und Zweck zu erkennen, sein Herz in Zuneigung verstrickt — der handelt ohne Unterscheidungsvermögen.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Trust and affection should not arise merely from habit or emotion; they must be guided by understanding of artha-yukti—clear reasoning about motives, interests, and consequences. Without such discernment, even friendship can become a cause of harm.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and nīti. Here he warns about the dangers of forming attachment without first grasping the strategic and ethical rationale (artha-yukti) behind relationships of friendship and enmity.