Shloka 12
Nīti-upadeśa to a Rājaputra: Self-restraint, Alliances, and Rival-Management (नीतिउपदेशः)
अलभ्या ये शुभा भावा: स्त्रियश्चवाच्छादनानि च । शय्यासनानि यानानि महाहाणि गृहाणि च
alabhyā ye śubhā bhāvāḥ striyaś ca vācchādanāni ca | śayyāsanāni yānāni mahāhāṇi gṛhāṇi ca ||
भीष्म उवाच—अलभ्याः ये शुभा भावाः स्त्रियश्च वाच्छादनानि च । शय्यासनानि यानानि महाहाणि गृहाणि च ॥ तेष्वेव शत्रुं संसज्ज्य शनैः क्षपय संसदम् । भोगासक्तस्य वै तस्य स्वयमेव क्षयो भवेत् ॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches a pragmatic principle of rāja-nīti: an enemy can be weakened not only by force but by encouraging his attachment to costly pleasures, so that he exhausts his wealth and collapses through self-created dependency.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs the prince on governance and strategy. Here he lists luxury objects—women, fine clothing, beds, seats, vehicles, and expensive houses—as means to lure an adversary into indulgence and financial depletion.