Shloka 46
Daṇḍanīti and the King as the Cause of Yuga-Order (दण्डनीतिः राजधर्मश्च युगकारणत्वम्)
काष्ठानि चाभिहार्याणि तथा कूपांश्न॒ खानयेत् । संशोधयेत् तथा कूपान् कृतपूर्वान् पयोडर्थिभि:
kāṣṭhāni cābhihāryāṇi tathā kūpāṁś ca khānayet | saṁśodhayet tathā kūpān kṛtapūrvān payodarthibhiḥ ||
Bhishma said: “One should also bring in firewood, and likewise have wells dug. And in the same way, one should have previously made wells cleaned out, for the sake of those who seek water.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma includes practical compassion: ensuring basic necessities—especially water—by creating and maintaining public resources (digging new wells and cleaning old ones), and supplying essentials like firewood.
In Bhishma’s instruction on righteous conduct and governance in the Shanti Parva, he lists concrete duties of care for the community: arrange firewood, dig wells, and restore existing wells so that travelers and residents who need water are not deprived.