Shloka 69
Śaraṇāgatapālana—Prastāvanā
Protection of the Refuge-Seeker: Opening of the Kapota Narrative
न तत् तरेद् यस्य न पारमुत्तरे- न्न तद्धरेद् यत् पुनराहरेत् पर: । न तत् खनेद् यस्य न मूलमुद्धरे- न्न त॑ हन्याद् यस्य शिरो न पातयेत्
na tat tared yasya na pāram uttare
na tad dhared yat punar āharet paraḥ |
na tat khaned yasya na mūlam uddharen
na taṁ hanyād yasya śiro na pātayet ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Jangan cuba menyeberangi sesuatu yang tiada tebing seberang. Jangan merampas sesuatu yang orang lain masih boleh merampas kembali. Jangan menggali sesuatu yang tidak mampu dicabut hingga ke akar. Dan jangan memukul jatuh seseorang yang kepalanya tidak mampu engkau jatuhkan ke tanah.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Do not initiate undertakings that lack a clear, achievable completion or decisive advantage. Actions that cannot be finished, defended, or carried through to the root tend to rebound—inviting recovery by opponents, renewed conflict, or unresolved harm—so dharma requires foresight and proportionality.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on rājadharma and nīti. Here he delivers a compact set of maxims warning a ruler (and any agent) against half-measures in struggle—crossing without a shore, taking what will be reclaimed, digging without uprooting, or attacking without the power to subdue.