Shloka 31
उतथ्योपदेशः—राजधर्मः, दर्पनिग्रहः, प्रजारक्षणम्
Utathya’s Instruction: Royal Dharma, Restraint of Pride, Protection of Subjects
निगृहीतादमात्याच्च स्त्रीभ्यश्नैव विशेषतः । पर्वताद् विषमाद् दुर्गाद्धस्तिनो 5श्वात् सरीसूपात्
nigṛhītād amātyāc ca strībhyaś caiva viśeṣataḥ | parvatād viṣamād durgād hastino 'śvāt sarīsṛpāt ||
Utathya sprach: „Ein König soll sich in Sicherheit halten vor einem Minister, der einst verhaftet wurde, und ganz besonders vor den Frauen anderer Männer. Er soll sich auch hüten vor gefährlichen Bergen und schwer zugänglichen Festungen sowie vor den Gefahren durch Elefanten, Pferde und kriechende Reptilien (wie Schlangen). Darum soll er stets wachsam bleiben, nächtliches Umherstreifen meiden und Geiz, Hochmut, Heuchelei und Zorn gänzlich ablegen.“
उतथ्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches rājadharma as practical vigilance and moral discipline: a ruler must avoid predictable sources of danger (political enemies, illicit entanglements, hazardous terrain, and powerful animals) and must also renounce inner vices—miserliness, pride, hypocrisy, and anger—that undermine sound judgment and stable rule.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on kingship, the sage Utathya addresses guidance for a king’s conduct. He lists concrete external threats and then adds an ethical injunction to abandon destructive character traits, framing governance as both security-awareness and self-mastery.