Shloka 25
Daṇḍotpatti-kathana (Origin and Function of Daṇḍa) — वसुहोम–मान्धातृ संवाद
इसी प्रकार दण्डनीति भी ब्रह्माजीकी कन्या कही गयी है। लक्ष्मी, वृत्ति, सरस्वती तथा जगद्धात्री भी उसीके नाम हैं। इस प्रकार दण्डके बहुत-से रूप हैं ।।
bhīṣma uvāca | evaṃ daṇḍanītir api brahmaṇaḥ kanyā proktā | lakṣmīr vṛttiḥ sarasvatī jagaddhātrī ceti tasyā eva nāmāni | evaṃ daṇḍasya bahurūpāṇi santi | arthānarthau sukhaṃ duḥkhaṃ dharmādharmau balābale | daurbhāgyaṃ bhāgadhēyaṃ ca puṇyāpuṇye guṇāguṇī | kāmākāmau ṛtu-māsau dina-rātrau kṣaṇaḥ pramādāpramādau harṣa-krodhau śama-damau daiva-puruṣārthau bandha-mokṣau bhayābhayau hiṃsāhiṃse tapa-yajñau saṃyamaḥ viṣāviṣau ādir antaḥ madhyaṃ kārya-vistāraḥ madaḥ asāvadhānatā darpaḥ dambhaḥ dhairyaṃ nīty-anītī śakty-aśaktī mānaḥ stabdhatā vyayāvyayau vinayaḥ dānaṃ kālākālau satyāsatye jñānaṃ śraddhāśraddhe akarmaṇyatā udyogaḥ lābhahānī jayaparājayau tīkṣṇatā-mṛdutā mṛtyuḥ āgamanāgamanam virodhāvirodhau kartavyākartavye sabalatā-nirbalatā asūyānasūye dharmādharmau lajjā-lajjā sampatti-vipattī sthānaṃ tejaḥ karma pāṇḍityaṃ vākśaktiḥ tattvabodhaś ca—etāni sarvāṇi daṇḍasyaiva nāmāni rūpāṇi ca | kurunandana, evaṃ loke daṇḍasya bahurūpāṇi santi ||
एवमेव दण्डनीतिरपि ब्रह्मणः कन्येति कथ्यते। लक्ष्मीर्वृत्तिः सरस्वती जगद्धात्रीति चास्याः संज्ञाः। एवं दण्डस्य बहवो रूपभेदाः—अर्थानर्थौ सुखदुःखे धर्माधर्मौ बलाबले, दौर्भाग्यभागधेये पुण्यापुण्ये गुणागुणी, कामाकामौ ऋतुर्मासौ दिवसशर्वरी क्षणः, प्रमादाप्रमादौ हर्षक्रोधौ शमो दमः, दैवं पुरुषकारश्च बन्धमोक्षौ भयाभये, हिंसाहिंसे तपो यज्ञः संयमो विषाविषम्, आदिरन्तोऽथ मध्यं च कृत्यानां च प्रविस्तरः, मदः प्रमादो दर्पश्च दम्भो धैर्यं नयानयौ, शक्त्यशक्ती मानस्तब्धे व्ययाव्यये विनयदानम्, कालाकालौ सत्यासत्ये ज्ञानं श्रद्धाश्रद्धके, अकर्मण्यतायोगौ लाभहानि जयाजयौ, तीक्ष्णता मृदुता मृत्युर्गमनागमने तथा, विरोधाविरोधौ कर्तव्याकर्तव्ये सबलनिर्बले, असूयानसूये लज्जालज्जे सम्पत्तिविपत्तिके, स्थानं तेजः कर्म पाण्डित्यं वाक्शक्तिस्तत्त्वबोधनम्—एतानि सर्वाणि दण्डस्यैव नामरूपाणि। कुरुनन्दन, एवं लोके दण्डस्य बहवो विग्रहाः॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Daṇḍa (the coercive authority of rule) is not merely physical punishment; it is a comprehensive principle that manifests as paired opposites—benefit and harm, virtue and vice, vigilance and negligence, fate and effort, restraint and excess—through which society is regulated. Proper governance recognizes these many forms and applies discipline to sustain order and welfare.
In the Shanti Parva dialogue on kingship and dharma, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira. Here he personifies daṇḍanīti as Brahmā’s daughter and lists numerous dualities to show that the king’s ‘rod’ operates across every sphere of life—ethical, psychological, social, and practical—thereby maintaining the world.