Shloka 70
Nāradasya Rājadharma-praśnāḥ
Nārada’s Examination of Royal Ethics
कच्चिन्न पाने द्यूते वा क्रीडासु प्रमदासु च । प्रतिजानन्ति पूर्वाह्नि व्ययं व्यसनजं तव,तुम्हारे सेवक पूर्वाह्नकालमें (जो कि धर्माचरणका समय है) तुमसे मद्यपान, द्यूत, क्रीड़ा और युवती स्त्री आदि दुर्व्यसनोंमें तुम्हारा समय और धनको व्यर्थ नष्ट करनेके लिये प्रस्ताव तो नहीं करते?
kaccin na pāne dyūte vā krīḍāsu pramadāsu ca | pratijānanti pūrvāhṇe vyayaṁ vyasanajaṁ tava ||
Nārada said: “Do your attendants ever urge you, in the forenoon—the very time meant for righteous duties—to squander your time and wealth on vices such as drinking, gambling, amusements, and dalliance with women?”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler must guard the prime hours meant for dharma and governance from being consumed by addictive pleasures—drink, gambling, frivolous play, and sensual indulgence—since these lead to waste of wealth and moral decline.
Nārada, speaking as a moral counselor, questions the king about courtly discipline: whether servants or companions tempt him in the morning to engage in vices that squander time and resources.