Shloka 20
अध्याय ७२ — राजधर्मः: प्रजारक्षण, कर-नीति, दण्ड-नीति, अमात्य-नियोजन
Chapter 72 — Royal Duty: protection of subjects, taxation, punishment, and appointments
मालाकारोपमो राजन् भव मा<5<ड्रारिकोपम: । तथायुक्तश्रिरं राज्यं भोक्त शक्ष्यसि पालयन्
mālākāropamo rājan bhava māṇḍrārikopamaḥ | tathāyuktaśrīraṁ rājyaṁ bhoktuṁ śakṣyasi pālayan, yudhiṣṭhira ||
Bhīṣma said: “O King, be like a gardener, not like a maker of charcoal. A gardener nourishes the roots and protects the tree, and only then enjoys its flowers and fruits; but a charcoal-burner destroys the tree from the root. In the same way, if you sustain and safeguard the kingdom and remain intent on the people’s welfare, you will enjoy the prosperity of rulership for a long time, O Yudhiṣṭhira.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler should govern like a gardener—nourishing and protecting the roots of the realm (the people and institutions) and taking only rightful benefit—rather than like a charcoal-maker who gains by destroying the very source of prosperity.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhīṣma counsels King Yudhiṣṭhira using a vivid metaphor: sustainable, protective rule yields long-lasting prosperity, whereas exploitative rule ruins the kingdom.