Shloka 17

Devanagari script

अराजका:ः प्रजा: पूर्व विनेशुरिति न: श्रुतम्‌ । परस्परं भक्षयन्तो मत्स्या इव जले कृशान्‌,हमने सुन रखा है कि जैसे पानीमें बलवान मत्स्य दुर्बल मत्स्योंकोी अपना आहार बना लेते हैं, उसी प्रकार पूर्वकालमें राजाके न रहनेपर प्रजावर्गके लोग परस्पर एक-दूसरेको लूटते हुए नष्ट हो गये थे

Transliteration

arājakāḥ prajāḥ pūrvaṁ vineśur iti naḥ śrutam | parasparaṁ bhakṣayanto matsyā iva jale kṛśān ||

Translation

Bhishma said: “We have heard that in ancient times, when there was no king, the people perished. Like fish in water, the strong devoured the weak; so too, in the absence of rulership, people preyed upon one another and were destroyed.”

Word by Word

अराजकाःwithout a king (kingless)

प्रजाःsubjects, people

पूर्वम्formerly, earlier

विनेशुःperished, were destroyed

इतिthus (quotative)

नःof us, our

श्रुतम्heard (it is heard/known)

परस्परम्mutually, one another

भक्षयन्तःdevouring, eating

मत्स्याःfish

इवlike, as

जलेin water

कृशान्the weak, the lean (ones)

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

prajā (the people/subjects)

matsya (fish)

jala (water)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Without legitimate rulership and enforcement of dharma, society collapses into “matsya-nyaya” (the law of the fish), where the strong exploit the weak; kingship is presented as a necessary instrument for protection and order.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Bhishma’s discourse on rajadharma in the Shanti Parva, he cites an old tradition: when there was no king, people mutually preyed upon each other, like fish in water, leading to widespread ruin.