Shloka 39
Varṇa-dharma and Rājadharma: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Normative Outline (वर्णधर्म-राजधर्म-प्रश्नोत्तरम्)
आसुरश्रैव विजयस्तथा कार्त्स्न्येन वर्णित: । लक्षणं पज्चवर्गस्य त्रिविध॑ चात्र वर्णितम्
āsuraś caiva vijayas tathā kārtsnyena varṇitaḥ | lakṣaṇaṁ pañcavargasya trividhaṁ cātra varṇitam ||
Bhishma berkata: Di sini, cara kemenangan yang bersifat “āsura” (kejam) juga telah dihuraikan sepenuhnya. Demikian juga, ciri-ciri lima unsur negara telah diterangkan dalam tiga darjat. Maka risalah ini menerangkan secara lengkap waktu yang sesuai untuk menyerang musuh, keluasan trivarga, serta perbezaan kemenangan—melalui dharma, melalui kekayaan/kekuasaan, dan melalui paksaan semata-mata—berserta tanda-tanda unggul, sederhana dan rendah bagi menteri, wilayah, kubu, tentera dan perbendaharaan.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma classifies victory by its ethical quality—victory aligned with dharma, victory pursued through wealth/power (artha), and victory achieved through ruthless coercion (āsura). He also teaches that sound governance depends on assessing the five state-constituents and recognizing their superior, middling, and inferior conditions.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhīṣma summarizes what has been covered: strategic occasions for attacking enemies, the framework of the three aims of life, and a systematic account of different kinds of conquest, along with a graded evaluation of the minister, realm, fort, army, and treasury.