Shloka 37
Dasyu-maryādā and Buddhi-guided Rāja-nīti (दस्युमर्यादा तथा बुद्धिप्रधान-राजनीति)
ब्रह्मदत्त तवाच कृतस्य चैव कर्तुश्न सख्यं संधीयते पुनः । वैरस्योपशमो दृष्ट: पापं नोपाश्लुते पुन:,ब्रह्मदत्तने कहा--पूजनी! बदला ले लेनेपर तो वैर शान्त हो जाता है और अपकार करनेवालेको उस पापका फल भी नहीं भोगना पड़ता; अतः: अपराध करने और सहनेवालेका मेल पुनः हो सकता है
brahmadatta uvāca—kṛtasya caiva kartuś ca sakhyaṃ sandhīyate punaḥ | vairasyopaśamo dṛṣṭaḥ pāpaṃ nopāśnute punaḥ ||
Brahmadatta said: “Between the one who has suffered a wrong and the one who committed it, friendship can indeed be restored again. For it is observed that when retaliation has been carried out, hostility subsides, and the wrongdoer is no longer made to bear the burden of that sin; therefore reconciliation between the offender and the one who endured the offense becomes possible once more.”
ब्रह्मदत्त उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse argues that hostility can subside after retaliation, making renewed friendship possible between offender and victim; it frames retaliation as a mechanism that ‘settles’ enmity and ends further moral liability being pressed upon the wrongdoer.
Brahmadatta is presenting a moral-psychological observation in a discourse on conduct: he claims that once vengeance has been taken, the heat of enmity cools and reconciliation between the parties can be re-established.