Shloka 7
Droṇācārya’s Assessment of the Pāṇḍavas: Nīti, Kāla, and Intelligence (विराटपर्व, अध्याय २६)
तस्मात् क्षिप्रं बुभूषध्वं यथा तेडत्यन्तमव्ययम् | राज्य निर्द्धन्द्धमव्यग्रं निःसपत्नं चिरं भवेत्,“वे सब समयकी नियत अवधिको जानते हैं; अतः कही ऐसा वेष धारण करके छिपे होंगे, जिससे उन्हें पहचानना कठिन हो गया है; इसलिये आपलोग शीघ्र उनका पता लगानेकी चेष्टा करें, जिससे वे क्रोधको दबाकर उतने ही समयके लिये अर्थात् बारह वर्षोके लिये फिर वनमें चले जायँ। ऐसा होनेपर ही मेरा यह राज्य दीर्घकाल-तकके लिये निर्दन्द्ध, व्यग्रताशून्य तथा निष्कण्टक हो जायगा”
tasmāt kṣipraṁ bubhūṣadhvaṁ yathā te 'tyantam avyayam | rājyaṁ nirdvandvam avyagraṁ niḥsapatnaṁ ciraṁ bhavet ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Therefore act quickly and seek them out, so that your rule may become utterly secure. Only then will this kingdom remain for a long time free from internal strife, free from anxiety, and without rivals.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames good governance as the removal of threats and causes of agitation: a stable kingdom is one that is nirdvandva (free of contention), avyagra (free of anxiety), and niḥsapatna (without rivals). It emphasizes timely, decisive action to preserve political order.
In the Virāṭa-parvan context, counsel is being given to act swiftly to locate the concealed opponents (the Pāṇḍavas in disguise, as implied by the surrounding passage), because the ruler’s long-term security depends on preventing their re-emergence as a rival power.