Shloka 28
राजधर्मः—राष्ट्ररक्षणं, दण्डनीतिः, हयग्रीवोपाख्यानम्
Royal Duty: Protection, Penal Policy, and the Hayagrīva Exemplum
'प्रिय मित्र! स्त्री अथवा पुत्रोंका थोड़ा-सा भी अप्रिय कर दो, फिर स्वयं समझ जाओगे कि कौन किस हेतुसे किस तरह किसके साथ कितना सम्बन्ध रखता है? ।। ये च मूढतमा लोके ये च बुद्धेः परं गता: । त एव सुखमेधन्ते मध्यम: क्लिश्यते जन:,'संसारमें जो अत्यन्त मूर्ख हैं, अथवा जो बुद्धिसे परे पहुँच गये हैं, वे ही सुखी होते हैं; बीचवाले लोग कष्ट ही उठाते हैं!
priya mitra! strī athavā putrāṇāṁ thoḍā-sā api apriyaṁ kṛtvā punaḥ svayaṁ jñāsyasi—kaḥ kasya hetoḥ kathaṁ kasya saha kiyad-sambandhaṁ dhārayati? ye ca mūḍhatamā loke ye ca buddheḥ paraṁ gatāḥ, ta eva sukham edhante, madhyamaḥ kliśyate janaḥ.
Vyāsa disse: “Amigo querido! Causa ainda que um leve desagrado à esposa ou aos filhos, e compreenderás por ti mesmo quem permanece ligado a quem, de que modo e até que ponto—e por qual motivo. Neste mundo, só os totalmente tolos, ou aqueles que foram além do alcance do intelecto comum, verdadeiramente florescem na felicidade; o homem mediano é quem sofre.”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Vyāsa highlights that many relationships are tested by even minor displeasure, revealing hidden motives and conditional attachment. He then contrasts three types: the utterly deluded (who do not reflect and thus feel little inner conflict), the truly transcendent (who have gone beyond ordinary intellect and are inwardly free), and the ‘middle’ person who is neither ignorant nor liberated—therefore caught in anxiety, calculation, and suffering.
In the didactic setting of the Śānti Parva, Vyāsa addresses a listener as “dear friend” and offers a practical observation about social and familial bonds: create a small friction with wife or sons and the real texture of relationships becomes evident. He uses this as a springboard for a broader reflection on why different temperaments experience happiness or distress in worldly life.