Shloka 138
आपद्धर्मनिर्णयः — विश्वामित्र-श्वपचसंवादः
Apaddharma Determination: Dialogue of Viśvāmitra and the Śvapaca
शत्रुरूपा हि सुहृदो मित्ररूपाश्न शत्रव: । संधितास्ते न बुद्धयन्ते कामक्रोधवशं गता:
śatrurūpā hi suhṛdo mitrarūpāś ca śatravaḥ | sandhitās te na budhyante kāma-krodha-vaśaṃ gatāḥ ||
शत्रुरूपा हि सुहृदो मित्ररूपाश्च शत्रवः। संधितास्ते न बुद्ध्यन्ते कामक्रोधवशं गताः॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
External labels—‘friend’ or ‘enemy’—are unstable when people are driven by desire and anger. Ethical discernment requires attention to motives and self-control, not merely to treaties or appearances.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on conduct in distress (Āpaddharma), Bhīṣma warns about the unreliability of alliances: after a pact, those overcome by kāma and krodha become hard to read, as friends may act like enemies and enemies like friends.