Shloka 11
Treasury Security, Protection of Informants, and the Kalakavṛkṣīya Exemplum (Śānti Parva 83)
ततः स काकमादाय राजान द्रष्टमागमत् | सर्वज्ञोडस्मीति वचन ब्रूवाण: संशितव्रत:
tataḥ sa kākam ādāya rājānaṃ draṣṭum āgamat | sarvajño ’smi iti vacanaṃ brūvāṇaḥ saṃśitavrataḥ |
Darauf nahm der Weise die Krähe mit sich und kam, um den König zu sehen. Streng in seinen Gelübden, verkündete er: „Ich bin allwissend“, und trat vor den Herrscher—nachdem er Kenntnis von den vielfältigen Gewerben des Reiches gesammelt und von Ort zu Ort die Vorfälle erkundet hatte, bei denen königlicher Besitz von Beamten veruntreut worden war.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse sets up an ethical inquiry into governance: a ruler must be vigilant about misappropriation by officials, and claims of superior knowledge (“I am omniscient”) should be tested against truth and used to uphold justice rather than to impress or dominate.
A vow-observing sage arrives to meet the king, bringing a crow. He declares himself omniscient and comes after learning about the kingdom’s occupations and discovering scattered reports of the king’s wealth being stolen by state employees—preparing to confront or advise the king.