Shloka 15
Book 12, Chapter 93 — Vāmadeva’s Counsel to King Vasumanā on Dharmic Kingship (धर्मप्रधान-राजधर्मोपदेशः)
अदाता हानतिस्नेहो दण्डेनावर्तयन् प्रजा: । साहसप्रकृती राजा क्षिप्रमेव विनश्यति,जो दुःसाहसी, दान न देनेवाला और स्नेहशून्य तथा दण्डके द्वारा प्रजाको बार-बार सताता है, वह राजा शीघ्र ही नष्ट हो जाता है
adātā hānati-sneho daṇḍenāvartayan prajāḥ | sāhasa-prakṛtī rājā kṣipram eva vinaśyati ||
Dijo Vāmadeva: El rey que no da (en caridad o sustento), que carece de afecto humano y que una y otra vez hostiga a sus súbditos con la vara del castigo—por ser de naturaleza temeraria y violenta—pronto cae en la ruina.
वामदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler must balance daṇḍa (punishment) with dāna (generosity) and sneha (benevolent concern). A king who is harsh, ungenerous, and repeatedly punitive—acting from reckless temperament—destroys legitimacy and stability and therefore quickly falls.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, the sage Vāmadeva is advising about the qualities that preserve or ruin a kingdom. He states that oppressive, loveless, and non-giving kings who rely on constant punishment bring about their own swift destruction.