Shloka 32
Śaraṇāgatapālana—Prastāvanā
Protection of the Refuge-Seeker: Opening of the Kapota Narrative
आशां कालवतीं कुर्यात् तां च विघ्नेन योजयेत् । विध्नं निमित्ततो ब्रूयान्निमित्तं चापि हेतुत:,“राजा शत्रुकी आशा पूर्ण होनेमें विलम्ब पैदा करे, उसमें विघ्न डाल दे। उस विघ्नका कुछ कारण बता दे और उस कारणको युक्तिसंगत सिद्ध कर दे
āśāṃ kālavatīṃ kuryāt tāṃ ca vighnena yojayet | vighnaṃ nimittato brūyān nimittaṃ cāpi hetutaḥ ||
ビーシュマは言った。「王は敵の望みを“時の問題”として引き延ばし、ついには障碍で絡め取れ。その障碍は何らかの口実から生じたものだと述べ、さらにその口実をもっともらしい理で裏づけよ。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler may strategically manage an opponent by prolonging the fulfillment of the opponent’s expectations, introducing obstacles, and framing those obstacles with credible pretexts and reasons—an instruction in calculated statecraft (rājanīti).
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on governance, Bhīṣma advises the king on practical methods to weaken an enemy’s plans: delay what the enemy hopes to achieve, create hindrances, and justify them through plausible explanations.