Shloka 30
Nāradasya Rājadharma-praśnāḥ
Nārada’s Examination of Royal Ethics
कच्चिन्मन्त्रयसे नैक: कच्चिन्न बहुभि: सह । कच्चित् ते मन्सत्रितो मन्त्रो न राष्ट्र परिधावति
kaccin mantrayase naikaḥ kaccin na bahubhiḥ saha | kaccit te mantrito mantro na rāṣṭra-paridhāvati ||
Nārada said: “Do you deliberate not all alone? And do you also avoid deliberating with too many people? Is it the case that your counsel—once decided in confidence—does not leak out and run about into other kingdoms?”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Effective and ethical governance requires disciplined counsel: neither isolating oneself from advice nor exposing sensitive plans to too many ears; confidential decisions must be protected from leakage to rival states.
Nārada questions the king’s administrative prudence, specifically whether he consults wisely and keeps state counsel confidential so that strategic decisions do not become known in other kingdoms.