Shloka 4
Vāmadeva’s Rājadharma: Norm-Setting, Counsel, and the Prevention of Rāṣṭra-Vināśa (वामदेव-प्रोक्तं राजधर्मम्)
साहसप्रकृतिर्यत्र किंचिदुल्बणमाचरेत् । अशास्त्रलक्षणो राजा क्षिप्रमेव विनश्यति
sāhasaprakṛtir yatra kiñcid ulbaṇam ācaret | aśāstralakṣaṇo rājā kṣipram eva vinaśyati ||
जिथे राजा स्वभावतः धाडसी-उद्दण्ड होऊन किंचितही अति किंवा हिंसा करतो आणि शास्त्र व सुशासनाच्या लक्षणांपासून वंचित असतो, तो राजा लवकरच नष्ट होतो।
वामदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler must be guided by śāstra and disciplined judgment; even minor acts of reckless excess, when rooted in a rash temperament, undermine legitimacy and stability and lead swiftly to ruin.
In the Śānti Parva’s rājadharma instruction, the sage Vāmadeva warns about a king’s character: a rash, unregulated ruler who acts outside śāstric norms quickly destroys himself and his rule.