Shloka 48
Daṇḍotpatti-kathana (Origin and Function of Daṇḍa) — वसुहोम–मान्धातृ संवाद
ईश्वरेण प्रयत्नेन कारणात् क्षत्रियस्य च | दण्डो दत्त: समानात्मा दण्डो हीद॑ सनातनम्
īśvareṇa prayatnena kāraṇāt kṣatriyasya ca | daṇḍo dattaḥ samānātmā daṇḍo hīdaṁ sanātanam ||
Bhīṣma dijo: «Por disposición del Señor y por el esfuerzo deliberado de los hombres—y porque es la causa y el deber asignados al kṣatriya—se ha establecido daṇḍa, imparcial en su esencia. En verdad, este principio de daṇḍa es eterno en este mundo.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Daṇḍa—lawful coercion and punishment—is a timeless principle meant to uphold dharma. It is to be applied with an impartial nature (samānātmā), and its administration is especially tied to the Kṣatriya’s role in protecting social order, under the overarching ordinance of Īśvara and through human effort.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhīṣma is teaching Yudhiṣṭhira about kingship and justice. Here he explains why the power to punish exists, grounding it in divine ordinance, practical effort, and the Kṣatriya’s governing responsibility.