Shloka 102
दण्डनीतिं पुरस्कृत्य विजाननू क्षत्रिय: सदा । अनवाप्तं च लिप्सेत लब्धं च परिपालयेत्
daṇḍanītiṃ puraskṛtya vijānannū kṣatriyaḥ sadā | anavāptaṃ ca lipseta labdhaṃ ca paripālayet ||
Bhīṣma dijo: «Teniendo ante todo la daṇḍanīti—la ciencia del gobierno y del castigo—, un kṣatriya debe obrar siempre con discernimiento: debe esforzarse por obtener lo que aún no ha asegurado y proteger y conservar lo ya alcanzado».
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler should make daṇḍanīti (just governance and enforcement) his guiding framework, combining clear judgment with two duties: to pursue what is necessary but not yet secured, and to safeguard what has already been achieved.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on rājadharma. Here he summarizes a practical maxim of kingship: disciplined statecraft, strategic acquisition, and vigilant preservation of the realm’s gains.