Shloka 10
Vipula’s Guru-Obedience, Divine Flowers, and the Peril of Others’ Oaths (विपुलोपाख्यानम्—पुष्पप्राप्तिः शपथ-प्रसङ्गश्च)
स्त्रीणां बुद्ध्यर्थनिष्कर्षादर्थशास्त्राणि शत्रुहन्
strīṇāṃ buddhy-artha-niṣkarṣād arthaśāstrāṇi śatruhan
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O slayer of foes, it is from the need to draw out and clarify the aims and workings of women’s understanding that treatises on polity and practical governance (arthaśāstra) are set forth.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The line links arthaśāstra (practical governance and policy) with the careful ascertainment of human motives and mental tendencies; it frames political knowledge as arising from analyzing how people—here specifically women—think and pursue aims, implying that effective rule requires insight into psychology and social conduct.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused dialogue, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses a ‘slayer of foes’ and makes a pointed observation about the origins or rationale of arthaśāstra, situating the discussion within broader teachings on conduct, governance, and social ethics.