Shloka 12
Nīti-upadeśa to a Rājaputra: Self-restraint, Alliances, and Rival-Management (नीतिउपदेशः)
अलभ्या ये शुभा भावा: स्त्रियश्चवाच्छादनानि च । शय्यासनानि यानानि महाहाणि गृहाणि च
alabhyā ye śubhā bhāvāḥ striyaś ca vācchādanāni ca | śayyāsanāni yānāni mahāhāṇi gṛhāṇi ca ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Les jouissances désirables et de bon augure, difficiles à obtenir—femmes, beaux vêtements pour se couvrir et se parer, lits et sièges, véhicules et demeures coûteuses—voilà précisément ce par quoi l’on peut enlacer un ennemi. En nourrissant son attachement à ces luxes, ses ressources s’épuisent peu à peu, et il court à sa perte de lui‑même.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches a pragmatic principle of rāja-nīti: an enemy can be weakened not only by force but by encouraging his attachment to costly pleasures, so that he exhausts his wealth and collapses through self-created dependency.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs the prince on governance and strategy. Here he lists luxury objects—women, fine clothing, beds, seats, vehicles, and expensive houses—as means to lure an adversary into indulgence and financial depletion.