Shloka 9
विग्रहं केन वा कुर्यात् संधिं वा केन योजयेत् । कथं वा शत्रुमध्यस्थो वर्तेत बलवानपि,किसके साथ विग्रह करे? अथवा किसके साथ संधि जोड़े और बलवान् पुरुष भी यदि शत्रुओंके बीचमें मिल जाय तो उसके साथ कैसा बर्ताव करे?
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | vigrahaṃ kena vā kuryāt sandhiṃ vā kena yojayet | kathaṃ vā śatru-madhyastho varteta balavān api |
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “With whom should one choose to enter into hostility, and with whom should one forge a treaty? And even if a man is powerful, if he finds himself placed amid enemies, how should he conduct himself there?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic problem of rāja-nīti: conflict and alliance must be chosen with discernment, and even strength is not sufficient—one must know the proper conduct when surrounded by enemies, balancing prudence, restraint, and strategic judgment.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on governance and ethics after the war, Yudhiṣṭhira asks for guidance on when to make war or peace and how a ruler (or capable person) should act if caught among hostile forces.