Shloka 38
Vāmadeva’s Rājadharma: Norm-Setting, Counsel, and the Prevention of Rāṣṭra-Vināśa (वामदेव-प्रोक्तं राजधर्मम्)
अपि सर्वगुणैर्युक्त भर्तरें प्रियवादिनम् । अभिद्रह्मृति पापात्मा न तस्माद् विश्वसेज्जनात्
api sarvaguṇair yuktaṁ bhartāraṁ priyavādinam | abhidruhya tiṣṭhati pāpātmā na tasmād viśvasej janāt ||
Vāmadeva said: “Even if a man’s master is endowed with every virtue and always speaks kindly, a sinful-minded person may still betray him without cause. Therefore, one should never place trust in such a person.”
वामदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral character is revealed by loyalty and gratitude: a person who can betray a virtuous, kind-speaking master without cause is fundamentally untrustworthy, so one should not rely on such a person.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on conduct and prudence, Vāmadeva offers a cautionary maxim: even the best treatment by a worthy superior cannot prevent betrayal by a pāpātmā, hence wise people must be discerning about whom they trust.