Shloka 106
Samrāt-Lakṣaṇa and the Counsel to Check Jarāsandha (सम्राट्-लक्षणं जरासन्ध-प्रतिबाधा-परामर्शः)
राजन् सेनापतिर्जातः शिशुपाल: प्रतापवान् । महाराज! वह अपनी राजनीतिक युक्तियोंसे इस समय सम्राट् बन बैठा है। राजन! कहते हैं
rājan senāpatir jātaḥ śiśupālaḥ pratāpavān | mahārāja! sa rājya-nīti-yuktibhiḥ samprati samrāḍ iva bhavati | rājan! śrūyate pratāpī rājā śiśupālaḥ sarvathā jarāsandham āśritya tasya pradhāna-senāpatir abhavat |
Kṛṣṇa said: “O King, the valiant Śiśupāla has become the commander of the army. By political stratagems he has, as it were, seated himself in the position of an emperor. It is said, O King, that the powerful Śiśupāla—taking refuge in Jarāsandha in every way—has risen to be his chief general.”
श्रीकृष्ण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights how political cunning and dependence on a stronger patron can elevate a person to high office, implicitly warning that power gained through stratagem and shelter under another’s dominance may lack true sovereignty and ethical stability.
Kṛṣṇa informs the addressed king that Śiśupāla, relying on Jarāsandha, has become Jarāsandha’s chief military commander and is behaving with the stature of an emperor due to his political maneuvers.