Shloka 65

Devanagari script

तथा जनपदाश्रैव पुरं च कुरुनन्दन । एतत्‌ सप्तात्मकं राज्यं परिपाल्यं प्रयत्नत:,कुरुनन्दन! राजाको उचित है कि सात वस्तुओंकी अवश्य रक्षा करे। वे सात कौन हैं? यह मुझसे सुनो। राजाका अपना शरीर, मन्त्री, कोश, दण्ड (सेना), मित्र, राष्ट्र और नगर-- से राज्यके सात अड़् हैं, राजाकों इन सबका प्रयत्नपूर्वक पालन करना चाहिये

Transliteration

tathā janapadāś caiva puraṁ ca kurunandana | etat saptātmakaṁ rājyaṁ paripālyaṁ prayatnataḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma berkata: “Demikian juga, wahai kebanggaan kaum Kuru, wilayah pedalaman (rakyat dan tanah jajahan) serta kota ibu negara hendaklah dilindungi. Kerajaan ini terbina daripada tujuh anggota utama; maka ia wajib dipelihara dengan usaha yang bersungguh-sungguh dan berjaga-jaga.”

Word by Word

• {'tathā': 'likewise

• in the same manner', 'janapadāḥ': 'territories and their people

• the realm/countryside (districts)', 'ca eva': 'and indeed

• also', 'puram': 'city

• capital/fortified town', 'kurunandana': 'O Kurus’ delight (address to the Kuru prince, i.e., Yudhiṣṭhira)', 'etat': 'this', 'saptātmakaṁ': 'having seven constituents

• seven-limbed', 'rājyam': 'kingdom

• state', 'paripālyam': 'to be protected/maintained

• to be governed and preserved', 'prayatnataḥ': 'with effort

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Kurunandana (Yudhishthira)
• janapada (realm/territory)
• pura (city/capital)
• rājya (kingdom)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A king must preserve the kingdom as a seven-part organism (saptātmaka/saptāṅga): governance is sustained by protecting its key supports—especially the realm (janapada) and the city (pura)—with constant diligence.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadhrama, Bhishma addresses Yudhiṣṭhira and continues outlining what a ruler must safeguard, emphasizing that the state has essential limbs and must be maintained through careful, sustained effort.