Shloka 20
Nīti-upadeśa to a Rājaputra: Self-restraint, Alliances, and Rival-Management (नीतिउपदेशः)
कोशक्षये त्वमित्राणां वशं कौसल्य गच्छति । उभयत्र प्रयुक्तस्य धर्मेणाधर्म एव च
kośakṣaye tv amitrāṇāṁ vaśaṁ kauśalya gacchati | ubhayatra prayuktasya dharmeṇādharm eva ca |
ビーシュマは言った。「国庫が尽きれば、ああカウシャリヤよ、王は必ずや敵の支配下に落ちる。なぜなら、常に両面に身を投じ—ある時はダルマに、ある時はアダルマに—動く統治者の財は必ず流れ去るからだ。庫が空になれば、その自立は崩れ、敵対する力に対して脆くなる。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A king’s strength rests on a well-maintained treasury; reckless conduct—whether justified as dharma or driven by adharma—can drain resources, and once the treasury is depleted the ruler loses autonomy and becomes subject to enemies.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhishma advises a Kosala ruler (addressed as Kauśalya) about practical governance: financial depletion leads directly to political vulnerability and enemy domination.