Shloka 9
धर्म्यविजय-नियमाः
Rules for Dharmic Victory in Kṣatriya Engagement
स चेन्निकृत्या युद्धयेत निकृत्या प्रतियोधयेत् । अथ चेद् धर्मतो युद्धयेद् धर्मेणैव निवारयेत्
sa cen nikṛtyā yudhyeta nikṛtyā pratiyodhayet | atha ced dharmato yudhyed dharmeṇaiva nivārayet ||
Bhīṣma said: “If an opponent fights by deceit, one should meet him with deceit in return. But if he fights according to dharma, then one should restrain him only by dharma—never by unrighteous means.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches a conditional ethic of warfare: answer deceit with deceit if necessary, but when the opponent is righteous, respond only with righteous means. Dharma is not to be abandoned against a dharmic adversary.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on kingship and conduct, Bhishma lays down a rule for how a warrior or ruler should respond to an enemy’s mode of fighting—distinguishing between treacherous and dharmic combat and prescribing an appropriate, ethically bounded response.