Shloka 8
Adharmic Victory as Unstable; Rules of Restraint, Mediation, and Conciliation (अधर्मविजय-अध्रुवत्व तथा क्षमा-नयः)
अनीकयो: संहतयोर्यदीयाद् ब्राह्मणो<न्तरा । शान्तिमिच्छन्नुभयतो न योद्धव्यं तदा भवेत्
anīkayoḥ saṁhatayor yadīyād brāhmaṇo 'ntarā | śāntim icchann ubhayato na yoddhavyaṁ tadā bhavet ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Apabila dua angkatan telah bertembung dan beradu, jika seorang brāhmaṇa melangkah ke tengah-tengah dengan hasrat menegakkan perdamaian, maka pada saat itu kedua-dua pihak tidak wajar meneruskan pertempuran; peperangan hendaklah dihentikan.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even amid active combat, dharma requires restraint: if a brāhmaṇa enters as a peace-seeker and mediator, both sides must cease fighting, honoring the priority of reconciliation and the protection of a non-combatant messenger of peace.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction on righteous conduct (especially norms of warfare and governance), he states a specific rule: when armies are engaged, the arrival of a brāhmaṇa between them with the intent to broker peace obligates both parties to stop the battle immediately.