Shloka 70

Vyāghra–Gomāyu Saṃvāda (व्याघ्रगोमायु संवाद) — Testing Character Beneath Appearances

Devanagari script

दूषितं परदोषै्हिं गृह्नीते योडन्यथा शुचिम्‌ । स्वयं संदूषितामात्य: क्षिप्रमेव विनश्यति,'जो दूसरोंके मिथ्या कलंक लगानेपर किसी निर्दोषको भी दण्ड देता है, वह दुष्ट मन्त्रियोंवाला राजा शीघ्र ही नष्ट हो जाता है”

Transliteration

dūṣitaṃ paradoṣaiḥ gṛhṇīte yo 'nyathā śucim | svayaṃ saṃdūṣitāmātyaḥ kṣipram eva vinaśyati ||

Translation

Bhishma berkata: “Seorang raja yang, tertipu oleh tuduhan dan celaan yang direkayasa orang lain, menghukum seseorang yang sesungguhnya tak bersalah dan suci, bertindak di bawah noda fitnah. Raja semacam itu—yang para menterinya sendiri korup—akan cepat binasa, sebab putusan yang tidak adil meruntuhkan dasar dharma kerajaan.”

Word by Word

दूषितम्tainted, corrupted

परदोषैःby others' faults

हिindeed, for

गृह्णीतेaccepts, takes up

यःwho

अन्यथाotherwise; wrongly; falsely

शुचिम्pure; innocent

स्वयम्himself

संदूषितामात्यःone whose ministers are corrupted

क्षिप्रम्quickly

एवindeed; certainly

विनश्यतिperishes; is ruined

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A king must not punish the innocent on the basis of others’ slander or unverified accusations; unjust punishment, especially under corrupt counsel, rapidly leads to the ruler’s downfall and the collapse of righteous governance.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rāja-dharma, Bhīṣma advises Yudhiṣṭhira about the ethics of rule and judgment, warning that a ruler who accepts defamatory reports and condemns the blameless—guided by tainted ministers—invites swift ruin.