Shloka 89
Daṇḍanīti and the King as the Cause of Yuga-Order (दण्डनीतिः राजधर्मश्च युगकारणत्वम्)
अर्ध त्यक्त्वा यदा राजा नीत्यर्धमनुवर्तते | ततस्तु द्वापरं नाम स काल: सम्प्रवर्तते,जब राजा दण्डनीतिके आधे भागको त्यागकर आधेका अनुसरण करता है, तब द्वापर नामक युगका आरम्भ हो जाता है
ardhaṃ tyaktvā yadā rājā nītyardham anuvartate | tatastu dvāparaṃ nāma sa kālaḥ sampravartate ||
Bhishma said: When a king abandons half of righteous statecraft and follows only a half-measure of policy, then the age called Dvāpara begins to set in. In other words, the decline of governance from full adherence to dharma into partial, compromised rule marks the turning of time toward moral deterioration.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A society’s moral age is shaped by the ruler’s commitment to dharmic governance: when a king compromises and practices only partial nīti (righteous policy), it signals a systemic decline, described here as the onset of Dvāpara.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on kingship and dharma, Bhishma explains to the listener how the yugas are recognized through the quality of rule; he states that when kings abandon a significant portion of proper statecraft, the time-character shifts into Dvāpara.