Shloka 48
गुरोरप्यवलिप्तस्य कार्याकार्यमजानतः । उत्पथं प्रतिपन्नस्थ दण्डो भवति शासनम्,“यदि गुरु भी घंमडमें भरकर कर्तव्य और अकर्तव्यको नहीं समझ रहा हो और बुरे मार्गपर चलता हो तो उसके लिये भी दण्ड देना उचित है; दण्ड उसे राहपर लाता है
guror apy avaliptasya kāryākāryam ajānataḥ | utpathaṁ pratipannasya daṇḍo bhavati śāsanam ||
Bhishma disse: Até mesmo um mestre, se inchado de orgulho e incapaz de discernir o que deve do que não deve ser feito, e se tomou um caminho errado—para ele também a punição é um meio adequado de governo; a disciplina o reconduz ao rumo correto.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
No one is above dharma: even a revered teacher who becomes arrogant and loses discernment of right and wrong may be corrected through daṇḍa (disciplinary punishment). Proper governance uses discipline to restore a person to the right path, not to indulge status or pride.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on righteous rule and social order, Bhishma teaches Yudhishthira principles of governance and correction. Here he states that if a guru deviates into wrongful conduct and cannot distinguish duty from non-duty, the ruler’s corrective authority may extend even to him.