Shloka 18
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय 33: धृतराष्ट्र-विदुर संवादः (विदुरनीतिः)
पुष्पं पुष्पं विचिन्वीत मूलच्छेदं॑ न कारयेत् । मालाकार इवारामे न यथाड्रारकारक:
puṣpaṁ puṣpaṁ vicinvīta mūlacchedaṁ na kārayet | mālākāra ivārāme na yathāṅgārakārakaḥ ||
बागेत माळी जसा एकेक फूल तोडतो, मुळ कापत नाही; तसाच राजा प्रजेचे रक्षण करून संयमाने कर घ्यावा—कोळसा करणाऱ्यासारखा मुळापासून तोडू नये.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
A king should collect revenue gradually and protectively, preserving the people—the source of the kingdom’s strength—rather than exploiting them in a way that destroys their livelihood and future productivity.
In Vidura’s counsel on statecraft and dharma, he uses a vivid analogy: the good ruler is like a gardener who plucks flowers without harming the plant, not like a charcoal-maker who cuts the tree down at the root for short-term benefit.