Shloka 54
Daṇḍotpatti-kathana (Origin and Function of Daṇḍa) — वसुहोम–मान्धातृ संवाद
यश्न वेदप्रसूतात्मा स धर्मो गुणदर्शन: । धर्मप्रत्यय उद्दिष्टो यथाधर्म कृतात्मभि:
yaś ca vedaprasūtātmā sa dharmo guṇadarśanaḥ | dharmapratyaya uddiṣṭo yathādharma kṛtātmabhiḥ ||
Bhishma said: That whose very essence is revealed from the Vedas is called Dharma. Dharma inevitably makes its own qualities—its beneficial results—manifest. Therefore, men of purified conduct have prescribed punishment grounded in trust in Dharma, to be administered in accordance with Dharma itself.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is rooted in Vedic revelation and is self-validating through its visible fruits; hence social discipline and punishment should be grounded in dharmic conviction and applied strictly in accordance with Dharma.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on righteous rule and conduct, Bhishma explains to Yudhishthira the basis of Dharma and why the wise prescribe danda (punishment) not as mere force but as a dharma-based instrument of order.