Shloka 4
राज्ञो वृत्त-गुण-संग्रहः (Conduct and the Thirty-Six Virtues of a King) / The King’s Code of Conduct
प्रियं ब्रयादकृपण: शूर: स्यादविकत्थन: । दाता नापात्रवर्षी स्यात् प्रगल्भ: स्यादनिष्ठर:
priyaṃ brūyād akṛpaṇaḥ śūraḥ syād avikatthanaḥ | dātā nāpātravārṣī syāt pragalbhaḥ syād aniṣṭhuraḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “A noble person should speak what is pleasing and be free from miserly narrowness. He should be courageous yet not boastful. He should be generous, but not one who pours gifts upon the unworthy. He should be confident and capable in action, yet never harsh or cruel.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma lists balanced virtues: kind speech without stinginess, courage without boasting, generosity guided by discernment (not wasted on the unworthy), and confident strength without harshness.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war, offering practical standards of character and conduct expected of a righteous person and ruler.