Shloka 10
आपद्-राजनीतिः (Āpad-rājanīti) — Policy Options in Multi-Front Crisis
राजोवाच कृशाकृशे मया बद्दान् गृहीते वचनात् तव । दुर्लभत्वं च तस्यैव वेदवाक्यमिव द्विज
rājovāca—kṛśākṛśe mayā baddhān gṛhīte vacanāt tava | durlabhatvaṃ ca tasyaiva vedavākyam iva dvija ||
El rey dijo: “Oh brahmán, he comprendido firmemente tu afirmación: quien está atado por la esperanza se vuelve débil, mientras que quien ha vencido la esperanza se vuelve robusto. Y, oh dos veces nacido, también he aceptado—como si fuera una sentencia védica—este punto tuyo: que el objeto por el cual se suspira con esperanza es sumamente difícil de obtener.”
ऋषभ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Hope (āśā) functions like a bond: when one’s mind is tied to expectation, inner strength diminishes; when expectation is conquered, steadiness and vigor arise. Moreover, craving makes the desired object seem—and often become—harder to attain, because the mind’s dependence itself is a form of suffering and instability.
In a didactic dialogue within Śānti Parva, the king responds to a Brahmin sage’s instruction. He affirms that he has understood and accepted the teaching, treating the sage’s words as authoritative—comparable to a Vedic statement—especially regarding the weakening effect of hope and the rarity of what is intensely hoped for.