Shloka 21

Mantri-Parīkṣā — Testing Ministers, Securing Counsel, and Ethical Criteria for Advisers (अध्याय ८४)

Devanagari script

जिनके साथ कोई-न-कोई सम्बन्ध हो

Transliteration

yeṣāṃ vainayikī buddhiḥ prakṛtiś caiva śobhanā | tejo dhairyaṃ kṣamā śaucaṃ anurāgaḥ sthitir dhṛtiḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma said: A king who seeks his own rise and the stability of sovereignty should appoint as ministers only those whose conduct has been thoroughly tested—men of disciplined judgment and good natural disposition, endowed with vigor, courage, forbearance, purity, loyal attachment, steadiness, and firm resolve. Such counsellors, free from greed and moral taint, rooted in right tradition and long experience of public service, become the ethical foundation of governance.

Word by Word

• {'yeṣām': 'of whom

• whose', 'vainayikī': 'pertaining to discipline and good training

• ethical refinement', 'buddhiḥ': 'intellect

• understanding', 'prakṛtiḥ': 'nature

• temperament', 'ca eva': 'and indeed', 'śobhanā': 'excellent

• commendable', 'tejaḥ': 'vigor

• moral and political force', 'dhairyam': 'courage

• steadfastness', 'kṣamā': 'forbearance

• capacity to forgive', 'śaucam': 'purity

• integrity', 'anurāgaḥ': 'affectionate loyalty

• devoted attachment', 'sthitiḥ': 'stability

• settledness', 'dhṛtiḥ': 'firmness

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma teaches that political power should be supported by ethical competence: ministers must be chosen for disciplined judgment, good character, loyalty, purity, patience, courage, and steady resolve—qualities that protect the king and the realm from corruption and instability.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on raja-dharma, Bhishma advises Yudhishthira on statecraft. Here he lists the inner virtues that mark trustworthy ministers, emphasizing tested character and stable temperament as prerequisites for high office.