Shloka 8

Daṇḍotpatti-kathana (Origin and Function of Daṇḍa) — वसुहोम–मान्धातृ संवाद

Devanagari script

भीष्म उवाच शृणु कौरव्य यो दण्डो व्यवहारो यथा च स: । यस्मिन्‌ हि सर्वमायत्तं स दण्ड इह केवल:

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca: śṛṇu kauravya yo daṇḍo vyavahāro yathā ca saḥ | yasmin hi sarvam āyattaṃ sa daṇḍa iha kevalaḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma dit : «Écoute, ô rejeton des Kuru. Je t’expliquerai ce qu’est véritablement “Daṇḍa”, et de quelle manière on le désigne aussi comme “vyavahāra” (l’ordonnancement des affaires, la procédure juridique et l’administration en pratique). Car ce dont tout dépend en ce monde—cela seul est appelé ici Daṇḍa, la force unique qui soutient l’ordre social.»

Word by Word

• {'śṛṇu': 'listen

• hear (imperative)', 'kauravya': 'O descendant of Kuru

• address to Yudhiṣṭhira', 'daṇḍaḥ': 'the rod

• royal authority that enforces law and order', 'vyavahāraḥ': 'worldly dealings

• practical governance', 'yathā': 'as

• in what manner', 'saḥ': 'that

• he/it', 'yasmin': 'in which

• upon which', 'hi': 'indeed

• for', 'sarvam': 'everything', 'āyattam': 'dependent

• subject to', 'iha': 'here

• in this world', 'kevalaḥ': 'alone

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Kauravya (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• Daṇḍa
• Vyavahāra

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma teaches that daṇḍa—coercive authority expressed as punishment and enforcement—is the indispensable foundation of orderly life; it is also closely tied to vyavahāra, the practical and legal administration through which justice is carried out.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on kingship and peace, Bhishma addresses Yudhiṣṭhira and begins explaining the nature of daṇḍa and how it functions as vyavahāra—i.e., the king’s system of governance and adjudication on which society depends.