Shloka 146
ज्येष्ठ-कनिष्ठ-धर्मः — Duties of Elders and Juniors
Anuśāsana-parva 108
यत्नवान् भव राजेन्द्र यत्नवान् सुखमेधते । अप्रधृष्यश्न शत्रूणां भृत्यानां स्वजनस्य च,नरेश्वर! क्षत्रियको धनुर्वेद और वेदाध्ययनके लिये यत्न करना चाहिये। राजेन्द्र! तुम हाथी-घोड़ेकी सवारी और रथ हाँकनेकी कलामें निपुणता प्राप्त करनेके लिये प्रयत्नशील बनो, क्योंकि यत्न करनेवाला पुरुष सुखपूर्वक उन्नतिशील होता है। वह शत्रुओं, स्वजनों और भृत्योंके लिये दुर्धर्ष हो जाता है
yatnavān bhava rājendra yatnavān sukham edhate | apradhṛṣyaś ca śatrūṇāṁ bhṛtyānāṁ svajanasya ca, nareśvara |
Bhīṣma said: “Be diligent, O best of kings. The diligent person prospers with ease. Through sustained effort, a ruler becomes unassailable—whether in the eyes of enemies, or even among his own people and servants. Therefore, O lord of men, a kṣatriya should strive for mastery of archery and the science of weapons, for Vedic study, and for practical royal skills such as riding elephants and horses and driving the chariot; for effort is the root of secure advancement and authority.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that sustained effort (yatna/udyama) is the foundation of a king’s prosperity and security. A ruler who trains diligently—intellectually and militarily—becomes difficult to overpower and gains stable authority among enemies as well as within his own household and administration.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma continues advising Yudhiṣṭhira on royal duty (rājadharma). Here he urges the king to be industrious and to cultivate the practical and scriptural disciplines expected of a kṣatriya, emphasizing that diligence leads to flourishing and invulnerability.