Shloka 130
Varṇa-dharma and Rājadharma: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Normative Outline (वर्णधर्म-राजधर्म-प्रश्नोत्तरम्)
शुभं हि कर्म राजेन्द्र शुभत्वायोपकल्पते । आत्मना कारणैश्वैव समस्येह महीक्षित:
śubhaṃ hi karma rājendra śubhatvāyopakalpate | ātmanā kāraṇaiś caiva samasy eha mahīkṣitaḥ ||
Bhishma berkata: “Wahai raja yang terbaik, perbuatan yang baik benar-benar membawa kepada keberuntungan. Di sini, wahai penguasa bumi, melalui diri sendiri—dan melalui sebab-sebab yang digerakkan oleh diri—seseorang mencapai keadaan yang seimbang dan teguh.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Auspicious outcomes arise from auspicious actions; one’s welfare is shaped by one’s own agency and the causal conditions one creates—ethical conduct is itself a means to well-being and inner balance.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs the king (Yudhiṣṭhira) on dharma and right governance. Here he emphasizes that good deeds naturally yield auspiciousness and that the king’s condition is determined by his own actions and their causes.