Shloka 32
Vāmadeva’s Rājadharma: Norm-Setting, Counsel, and the Prevention of Rāṣṭra-Vināśa (वामदेव-प्रोक्तं राजधर्मम्)
मुख्यानमात्यान् यो हित्वा निहीनान् कुरुते प्रियान् । स वै व्यसनमासाद्य गाधमार्तो न विन्दति
mukhyān amātyān yo hitvā nihīnān kurute priyān | sa vai vyasanam āsādya gāḍham ārto na vindati ||
Vāmadeva said: “He who abandons his foremost ministers and instead makes inferior men his favorites—when misfortune befalls him, he sinks into deep distress and finds no relief.”
वामदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler must retain and honor capable, senior counselors; preferring unqualified favorites undermines governance and, in crisis, leaves one without effective support or remedy.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous rule and conduct, Vāmadeva warns about the political and moral danger of discarding competent ministers in favor of lesser men, emphasizing the consequences when adversity arrives.