Shloka 12
Ānṛśaṃsya, Amātya-Guṇa, and Reconciliatory Counsel (आनृशंस्य–अमात्यगुण–संधि-उपदेशः)
अमात्य: शूर एव स्याद् बुद्धिसम्पन्न एव वा | ताभ्यां चैवोभयं राजन् पश्य राज्यप्रयोजनम्
amātyaḥ śūra eva syād buddhi-sampanna eva vā | tābhyāṃ caivobhayaṃ rājan paśya rājya-prayojanam ||
भीष्म उवाच— अमात्यः शूर एव स्याद् बुद्धिसम्पन्न एव वा। ताभ्यां चैवोभयं राजन् पश्य राज्यप्रयोजनम्॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that effective and righteous governance depends on capable ministers, who must embody either valor (for protection and decisive action) or wisdom (for sound judgment). These qualities support the king’s duty to secure welfare in both this life and the next—material order and moral-spiritual merit.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs King Yudhiṣṭhira on rājadharma (the duties of kingship). Here he emphasizes the criteria for appointing ministers and frames kingship’s goal as the twofold success of ‘both worlds,’ urging the king to reflect on the true purpose of rule.