Shloka 25
दुर्ग-निवेश-राजधर्मः | Fortified Capital and the King’s Residential Polity
Rājadharma
आश्रमेषु यथाकालं चैलभाजनभोजनम् । सदैवोपहरेद् राजा सत्कृत्याभ्यर्च्य मान्य च
āśrameṣu yathākālaṃ cailabhājanabhojanam | sadaivopahared rājā satkṛtyābhyarcya mānya ca ||
Bhīṣma said: At the proper times, in the hermitages, the king should always provide offerings—clothing, vessels, and food—doing so with due honor, respectful worship, and reverence. Thus he upholds dharma by sustaining those devoted to austerity and learning.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A king’s dharma includes timely, respectful support of āśramas and venerable persons—providing essentials like clothing, utensils, and food, not as mere charity but as honored service that sustains spiritual and social welfare.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on rājadharma. Here he specifies a practical duty of governance: regularly supplying hermitages and honored ascetics with necessities, offered with proper respect and reverence.