Shloka 23
Bhṛtya-niyoga: Role-appropriate appointment of servants and protection of the royal treasury (भृत्यनियोगः कोशरक्षणं च)
राजा गुणशताकीर्ण एष्टव्यस्तादृशो भवेत् | योधाश्रैव मनुष्येन्द्र सर्वे गुणगणैर्वृता:
bhīṣma uvāca | rājā guṇaśatākīrṇa eṣṭavyas tādṛśo bhavet | yodhāś caiva manuṣyendra sarve guṇagaṇair vṛtāḥ |
ビーシュマは言った。「幾百の徳に飾られた王こそ、民の安寧のために望まれ、選ばれるべき統治者である。おお人の主よ、国を守るにあたり王を支える戦士たちもまた、同じく優れた徳の群れを備えていなければならぬ。ゆえにこの務めには善き人々を求めるべきであり、自らの隆盛を願う王は、決して自軍の兵を侮ってはならない。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler should be richly endowed with virtues, and his military supporters should also be men of strong character; for effective and righteous governance, the king must select good people for protection of the realm and must not insult or demean his soldiers, since their dignity and morale are integral to the kingdom’s security and the king’s own success.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on rajadharma, Bhishma addresses the king (traditionally Yudhishthira) and lays down standards for governance: the ideal king is virtuous, and those who defend the state must likewise be qualified by good qualities; the passage emphasizes careful selection of personnel and respectful treatment of the army.