Shloka 15
Chapter 81: Trust, Allies, and the Qualifications of the King’s Artha-Secretary (अर्थसचिव)
तथैवात्युदकाद् भीतस्तस्य भेदनमिच्छति । यमेवंलक्षणं विद्यात् तममित्र विनिर्दिशेत्
tathaivātyudakād bhītastasya bhedanam icchati | yam evaṃlakṣaṇaṃ vidyāt tam amitraṃ vinirdiśet ||
Bhīṣma dit : «De même, l’homme qui, effrayé parce qu’une eau trop abondante s’est amassée dans son champ, veut briser la digue pour la laisser s’échapper—reconnais-le à ces signes et désigne-le comme un ennemi. Car si le gardien même des frontières d’un royaume rompt la frontière, le péril peut s’abattre sur le pays ; c’est pourquoi lui aussi doit être tenu pour un ennemi.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A person entrusted with protecting boundaries or safeguards becomes especially dangerous if he himself breaches them; betrayal by a guardian is a clear sign of enmity and must be treated as a security threat.
Bhishma uses a practical agrarian analogy: when a field floods, a frightened farmer may want to break the embankment to release water. He applies this to governance—if a kingdom’s boundary-keeper breaks the boundary, it invites peril, so such a person should be identified as an enemy.