Shloka 37
Jaitrya-nimitta: Signs of Prospective Victory and the Priority of Conciliation (जयलक्षण-निमित्त तथा सान्त्व-प्रधान नीति)
कृतं ममाप्रियं तेन तेनायं निहतो मृथे । इति वाचा बदन् इन्तृन् पूजयेत रहोगत:
kṛtaṃ mamāpriyaṃ tena tenāyaṃ nihato mṛdhe | iti vācā vadan nṛpān pūjayet rahogataḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “By that deed, something displeasing to me has been done; for by that very act this man has been slain in battle.” Speaking thus—voicing regret before the kings in words—the ruler should, once he has gone into private, honor and commend those brave warriors who have struck down the enemy’s foremost champions.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler should uphold ethical sensitivity about violence in public discourse—expressing restraint and regret—while still fulfilling rājadharma by privately honoring and rewarding those whose valor secures victory and protects the kingdom.
Bhīṣma advises that after a notable enemy warrior has been killed, the king may verbally lament the killing before other rulers, but once in private he should praise and honor the soldiers who accomplished the decisive feat against the enemy’s leading fighters.