Shloka 14
आपद्धर्मे राज्ञः नीतिः — Bharadvāja’s Counsel on Crisis-Statecraft (Śānti Parva 138)
उद्याने क्रियमाणे तु मत्स्यानां तत्र रज्जुभि: | प्रविश्यान्तरमेतेषां स्थित: सम्प्रतिपत्तिमान्
udyāne kriyamāṇe tu matsyānāṃ tatra rajjubhiḥ | praviśyāntaram eteṣāṃ sthitaḥ sampratipattimān |
Bhīṣma dit : «Là, dans l’étang, lorsque les pêcheurs se mirent à hisser le filet plein de poissons en tirant sur les cordes, le poisson à l’esprit prompt se glissa parmi ces mêmes poissons et demeura comme s’il était, lui aussi, lié dans le filet.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights sampratipatti—presence of mind and strategic adaptability in danger. It suggests that in crises one must act swiftly and intelligently, even if that means blending into circumstances to avoid immediate harm.
As fishermen pull up a rope-drawn net filled with fish, a particularly resourceful fish slips into the mass of captured fish and stays within the net as if caught, using concealment and timing as a tactic for survival.