Shloka 146
ज्येष्ठ-कनिष्ठ-धर्मः — Duties of Elders and Juniors
Anuśāsana-parva 108
यत्नवान् भव राजेन्द्र यत्नवान् सुखमेधते । अप्रधृष्यश्न शत्रूणां भृत्यानां स्वजनस्य च
yatnavān bhava rājendra yatnavān sukham edhate | apradhṛṣyaś ca śatrūṇāṁ bhṛtyānāṁ svajanasya ca, nareśvara |
Bhīṣma dit : «Sois diligent, ô meilleur des rois. Le diligent prospère avec aisance. Par l’effort soutenu, un souverain devient imprenable—aux yeux des ennemis, et même au milieu de son propre peuple et de ses serviteurs. Aussi, ô seigneur des hommes, qu’un kṣatriya s’applique à maîtriser le Dhanurveda/la science des armes, l’étude des Veda, et les arts royaux pratiques tels que monter l’éléphant et le cheval et conduire le char; car l’effort est la racine d’un progrès sûr et de l’autorité.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that sustained effort (yatna/udyama) is the foundation of a king’s prosperity and security. A ruler who trains diligently—intellectually and militarily—becomes difficult to overpower and gains stable authority among enemies as well as within his own household and administration.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma continues advising Yudhiṣṭhira on royal duty (rājadharma). Here he urges the king to be industrious and to cultivate the practical and scriptural disciplines expected of a kṣatriya, emphasizing that diligence leads to flourishing and invulnerability.