Shloka 8
Bhṛtya-niyoga: Role-appropriate appointment of servants and protection of the royal treasury (भृत्यनियोगः कोशरक्षणं च)
कृतज्ञं बलवन्तं च क्षान्तं दान्तं जितेन्द्रियम् । अलुब्धं लब्धसंतुष्टं स्वामिमित्रबु भूषकम्
kṛtajñaṃ balavantaṃ ca kṣāntaṃ dāntaṃ jitendriyam | alubdhaṃ labdhasaṃtuṣṭaṃ svāmimitrabubhūṣakam ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Que le roi choisisse pour ministre un homme reconnaissant et vigoureux ; patient et maître de lui-même ; souverain de ses sens ; exempt d’avidité ; content de ce qu’il reçoit ; et dévoué à accroître le bien-être et la prospérité de son seigneur et des amis de son seigneur.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A king’s minister should be ethically grounded and psychologically disciplined: grateful, capable, patient, self-controlled, free from greed, content with lawful gains, and actively committed to the prosperity of the ruler and his allies.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on rājadharma (the duties of kingship). Here he lists key virtues that qualify a person to serve as a minister, emphasizing character and loyalty as foundations of effective governance.