Shloka 25
Bhṛtya-niyoga: Role-appropriate appointment of servants and protection of the royal treasury (भृत्यनियोगः कोशरक्षणं च)
योधा: समरशौटीरा: कृतज्ञा: शस्त्रकोविदा: | धर्मशास्त्रसमायुक्ता: पदातिजनसंवृता:,जिसके योद्धा युद्धमें वीरता दिखानेवाले, कृतज्ञ, शस्त्र चलानेकी कलामें कुशल, धर्मशास्त्रके ज्ञानसे सम्पन्न, पैदल सैनिकोंसे घिरे हुए, निर्भय, हाथीकी पीठपर बैठकर युद्ध करनेमें समर्थ, रथचर्यामें निपुण तथा थरनुर्विद्यामें प्रवीण होते हैं, उसी राजाके अधीन इस भूमण्डलका राज्य होता है
bhīṣma uvāca | yodhāḥ samaraśauṭīrāḥ kṛtajñāḥ śastrakovidāḥ | dharmaśāstrasamāyuktāḥ padātijanasaṃvṛtāḥ |
Bhishma said: “That king truly holds sovereignty over the earth whose warriors are proven heroes in battle, grateful and loyal in spirit, skilled in the use of weapons, grounded in the teachings of dharma, and surrounded by well-supported infantry.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Legitimate and stable rule depends on an army that is both competent in warfare and guided by dharma: bravery and technical skill must be joined with gratitude/loyalty and ethical understanding.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on rajadharma, Bhishma advises the king about the qualities of forces that sustain sovereignty—describing the ideal warriors and the supportive infantry that enable righteous governance.