Shloka 57
राजधर्मप्रश्नः — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry into Rājadharma (Śānti-parva 56)
विस्नंसयन्ति मन्त्र च विवृण्वन्ति च दुष्कृतम् लीलया चैव कुर्वन्ति सावज्ञास्तस्य शासनम्,राजकीय गुप्त बातों तथा राजाके दोषोंको भी दूसरों पर प्रकट कर देते हैं। राजाके आदेशकी अवहेलना करके खिलवाड़ करते हुए उसका पालन करते हैं
visnaṃsayanti mantraṃ ca vivṛṇvanti ca duṣkṛtam | līlayā caiva kurvanti sāvajñās tasya śāsanam ||
Bhishma said: “They disparage the king’s counsel and even divulge it; they also expose his misdeeds. Treating his authority with contempt, they make a sport of his commands—appearing to comply, yet in truth undermining and mocking the very discipline of his rule.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma warns that those who belittle royal counsel, reveal confidential matters, and treat the ruler’s commands as a joke corrode governance and dharma. Loyalty, discretion, and sincere compliance with rightful authority are essential for stable rule.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on kingship and conduct, Bhishma describes a harmful type of courtly behavior: people who publicize the king’s private counsel and faults, and who outwardly ‘follow’ orders while inwardly mocking and subverting them.