Shloka 38
Daṇḍa as the Foundation of Social Order (दण्डप्रतिष्ठा)
विष्वग्लोप: प्रवर्तेत भिद्येरन् सर्वसेतव: । ममत्वं न प्रजानीयुर्यदि दण्डो न पालयेत्
viśvag-lopaḥ pravarteta bhidyeran sarva-setavaḥ | mamatvaṃ na prajānīyur yadi daṇḍo na pālayet ||
Dijo Arjuna: «Si la vara del castigo no sostuviera el orden, sobrevendría un derrumbe universal: se extinguirían por doquier las obras del dharma, se quebrarían todas las fronteras y frenos, y la gente ya no reconocería siquiera el sentido de “mío” y “no mío”, qué pertenece a quién».
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
That daṇḍa—legitimate punitive authority and enforcement of norms—is necessary to preserve dharma and social boundaries; without it, moral and legal distinctions collapse, including basic recognition of ownership and restraint.
In the Śānti Parva’s discussion on rājadharma (the duties of kings), Arjuna raises a governance-based argument: if the ruler does not maintain daṇḍa, society falls into disorder, with broken ‘setus’ (limits/constraints) and confusion about rights and property.