Adhyaya 27 — Madālasa’s Instruction to King Alarka: Royal Ethics, Self-Conquest, and Statecraft
मासानष्टौ यथा सूर्यस्तोयं हरति रश्मिभिः ।
सूक्ष्मेणैवाभ्युपायेन तथा शुल्कादिकं नृपः ॥
māsān aṣṭau yathā sūryas toyaṃ harati raśmibhiḥ | sūkṣmeṇaivābhyupāyena tathā śulkādikaṃ nṛpaḥ ||
സൂര്യന് എട്ടുമാസം തന്റെ കിരണങ്ങളാല് ജലം ആകര്ഷിക്കുന്നതുപോലെ, രാജാവ് നികുതികളും സമാനമായ ദായങ്ങളും സൂക്ഷ്മമായും ക്രമേണയും (കഠിനതയില്ലാതെ) ശേഖരിക്കണം.
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Revenue collection should be steady and minimally painful: like evaporation, it is effective precisely because it is gradual and non-violent, preserving the productive capacity of society.
Nīti instruction; not pancalakṣaṇa.
The Sun’s ‘taking’ is lawful and cyclical, returning as rain; likewise taxation is justified only when it re-circulates as protection and public good, not private hoarding.