Shloka 25
Nīti-upadeśa to a Rājaputra: Self-restraint, Alliances, and Rival-Management (नीतिउपदेशः)
एते चान्ये च बहवो दम्भयोगा: सुचिन्तिता: । शकक््या विषहता कर्तु पुरुषेण कृतात्मना,राजकुमार! अपने मनको वशमें रखनेवाला पुरुष यदि धर्मविरुद्ध आचरण करना सह सके तो ये तथा और भी बहुत-से भलीभाँति सोचे हुए कपटपूर्ण प्रयोग हैं, जो उसके द्वारा किये जा सकते हैं
ete cānye ca bahavo dambhayogāḥ sucintitāḥ | śakyā viṣahatā kartuṃ puruṣeṇa kṛtātmanā, rājakumāra |
Bhishma said: “These, and many other well-conceived stratagems of deceit, can indeed be carried out by a self-controlled man, O prince—if he is able to endure acting in ways that run contrary to dharma.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma highlights a moral tension: sophisticated deceptive tactics are feasible even for a disciplined person, but only if he can bear the inner cost of acting against dharma. Capability and self-control do not automatically make an action righteous; ethical endurance can be misused to sustain wrongdoing.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on conduct and governance, Bhishma addresses a prince and continues describing various calculated stratagems. He remarks that such deceitful devices can be executed by a self-mastered person—provided he can tolerate engaging in dharma-opposed behavior.