Shloka 17
राष्ट्रगुप्ति-संग्रहः
Protection of the Realm and Principles of Revenue & Local Administration
फलं कर्म च निर्लहेतु न कश्चित् सम्प्रवर्तते । यथा राजा च कर्ता च स्यातां कर्मणि भागिनौ
phalaṁ karma ca nirlhetu na kaścit sampravartate | yathā rājā ca kartā ca syātāṁ karmaṇi bhāginau ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „Niemand nimmt eine Handlung ohne Beweggrund auf—sei es um ihrer Frucht willen oder um der Tat selbst willen. Ebenso werden bei jedem Unternehmen sowohl der König, der befiehlt, als auch der Ausführende zu Teilhabern an dieser Tat und ihren Folgen.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Actions are not undertaken without some motive—either for the expected result or for the act itself—and responsibility for a deed is shared by both the authority who commissions it (the king) and the agent who performs it.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and governance, Bhishma explains principles of moral causality and political ethics, emphasizing that rulers cannot evade accountability by blaming only subordinates, nor can agents claim innocence by pointing only to orders.