Shloka 30
Daṇḍotpatti-kathana (Origin and Function of Daṇḍa) — वसुहोम–मान्धातृ संवाद
अनुतं ज्ञानिता सत्यं श्रद्धाश्रद्धे तथैव च | क्लीबता व्यवसायक्षु लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ
bhīṣma uvāca | anṛtaṃ jñānitā satyaṃ śraddhāśraddhe tathaiva ca | klībatā vyavasāyaś ca lābhālābhau jayājayau |
Bhishma bersabda: Kebatilan dan kebenaran yang dipastikan oleh pengetahuan; keyakinan dan ketiadaan keyakinan; kelemahan jiwa dan keteguhan tekad; untung dan rugi, menang dan kalah—ini dan banyak pasangan keadaan lainnya disebut sebagai beragam nama dan wujud daṇḍa, yakni prinsip pengekangan, ganjaran, dan penertiban. Wahai yang terbaik di antara Kuru, demikianlah daṇḍa tampil dalam tak terhitung manifestasi di dunia, membentuk perilaku melalui akibat dan menegakkan tatanan dharma.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma frames the many opposites that govern human experience—truth/falsehood, faith/doubt, resolve/weakness, gain/loss, victory/defeat—as manifestations of daṇḍa: the regulating principle of restraint and consequence that sustains social and moral order.
In the Shanti Parva dialogue, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on statecraft and dharma. Here he emphasizes that daṇḍa is not merely physical punishment but a pervasive ordering force seen through the paired outcomes and conditions that shape behavior in the world.