Shloka 71
बक-गौतमाख्यानम् / The Baka–Gautama Account
On Gratitude and Friendship Ethics
व्यड्भता च शरीरस्य वधो वानल्पकारणात् । असेरेतानि रूपाणि दुर्वारादीनि निर्दिशेत्
vyāḍbhatā ca śarīrasya vadho vānalpakāraṇāt | aseretāni rūpāṇi durvārādīni nirdiśet ||
Bhīṣma said: “There are punishments that reach even to mutilation of the body, and—when the cause is grave—punishment that extends to taking life. These forms of coercive penalty, hard to resist and difficult to ward off, should be clearly proclaimed. One must protect all subjects in accordance with dharma, without arbitrary favoritism: restraining offenders by censure and harsh speech (verbal penalty), by heavy monetary exaction (financial penalty), by bodily mutilation (corporal penalty), and—when a great crime demands it—by execution (capital penalty). Let the people be informed of these four, so that order is maintained through just, known, and proportionate discipline.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Punishment (daṇḍa) must be dharma-based, proportionate to the offense, and publicly known. A ruler should protect all subjects impartially and restrain wrongdoing through graded penalties—verbal censure, monetary fines, corporal punishment, and, for major crimes, execution.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous governance, Bhīṣma advises Yudhiṣṭhira on statecraft: how a king should maintain order by prescribing and announcing clear categories of punishment, ensuring deterrence and fairness rather than arbitrary rule.