Shloka 30
दुर्ग-निवेश-राजधर्मः | Fortified Capital and the King’s Residential Polity
Rājadharma
अन्य: कार्य: स्वराष्ट्रेषु परराष्ट्रेषु चापर: । अटवीषु पर: कार्य: सामन्तनगरेष्वपि,राजा अपने राज्यमें, दूसरोंके राज्योंमें, जंगलोंमें तथा अपने अधीन राजाओंके नगरोंमें भी एक-एक भित्न-भन्न तपस्वीको अपना सुहृद् बनाये रखे
anyaḥ kāryaḥ svarāṣṭreṣu pararāṣṭreṣu cāparaḥ | aṭavīṣu paraḥ kāryaḥ sāmantanagareṣv api ||
Di negeri sendiri diperlukan satu macam perantara; di negeri orang, perantara yang lain. Untuk hutan ditetapkan yang berbeda, demikian pula bagi kota-kota para raja bawahan. Seorang raja hendaknya, di tiap ranah itu, memelihara pertapa yang berlainan sebagai sahabat tepercaya—agar nasihat, kabar rahasia, dan wibawa dharma tersedia di mana-mana tanpa menimbulkan kecurigaan.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler should maintain a network of trustworthy, context-appropriate confidants/agents across different zones—home territory, foreign lands, forests, and feudatory towns—so governance remains informed and stable. The verse highlights prudent administration while implying ethical restraint: using respected ascetics as ‘friends’ can provide counsel and discreet information without overt coercion.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on rajadharma, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira on practical governance. Here he outlines how a king should arrange different kinds of operatives in different regions, including keeping distinct ascetics as trusted contacts in each sphere.