Shloka 13
आपद्धर्मे वैश्यवृत्तिः, विक्रय-निषेधाः, तथा ब्रह्म-क्षत्र-सम्बन्धः
Emergency Livelihood, Prohibited Trade, and Brahman–Kshatra Regulation
राजा त्राता तु लोकस्य कथं च स्यथात् परायणम् | एतन्मे संशयं ब्रूहि विस्तरेण नराधिप
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
rājā trātā tu lokasya kathaṃ ca syāt parāyaṇam |
etan me saṃśayaṃ brūhi vistareṇa narādhipa ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dijo: «Un rey es, en verdad, el protector del pueblo; pero ¿cómo puede llegar a ser su refugio último? Disipa esta duda mía con detalle, oh señor de los hombres».
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a key problem of rājadharma: a king is not only a political protector but must also function as the people’s dependable ‘final refuge’—a moral and practical guarantee of safety and order. Yudhiṣṭhira asks for a detailed account of how kingship can legitimately fulfill that role.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on governance and duty, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses the ruling authority (narādhipa) with a doubt: if the king is called the protector of the world, by what means and principles does he become the ultimate shelter for all? He requests an expanded explanation.