Shloka 14
Dasyu-maryādā and Buddhi-guided Rāja-nīti (दस्युमर्यादा तथा बुद्धिप्रधान-राजनीति)
अथ सा पूजनी राजन्नागमत् फलहारिणी । अपश्यन्निहतं पुत्रं तेन बालेन भूतले,राजन! तदनन्तर जब पूजनी फल लेकर लौटी तो उसने देखा कि राजकुमारने उसके बच्चेको मार डाला है और वह धरतीपर पड़ा है
atha sā pūjanī rājann āgamat phalahāriṇī | apaśyann ihataṃ putraṃ tena bālena bhūtale ||
Bhishma berkata: “Kemudian, wahai raja, Pūjanī pulang sambil membawa buah-buahan. Setibanya, dia melihat anaknya terbaring di tanah, dibunuh oleh budak itu. Adegan ini menegaskan pelanggaran dharma yang berat apabila yang tidak bersalah dizalimi, serta dukacita yang menyusul apabila kuasa atau dorongan nafsu mengatasi dharma.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the adharma of harming the innocent and implies that such an act brings immediate suffering and moral downfall; it frames violence against the helpless as a serious ethical transgression.
Pūjanī returns with fruits and discovers her son has been killed and lies on the ground, slain by a boy—an event presented to intensify the moral gravity and emotional consequence within Bhīṣma’s instruction to the king.