Shloka 9
अध्याय ५७ — राज्ञः नित्यप्रयत्नः, रक्षा-प्रधानता, तथा त्याग-नीतिः
Chapter 57: Constant Royal Vigilance, Primacy of Protection, and Principles of Dismissal
असमज्जा: सरय्वां स पौराणां बालकान् नृप । न््यमज्जयदत: पित्रा निर्भत्स्य स विवासित:
Asamañjāḥ Sarayvāṁ sa paurāṇāṁ bālakān nṛpa | nyamajjayad ataḥ pitrā nirbhartsya sa vivāsitaḥ ||
அரசே! அசமஞ்சன் நகர மக்களின் சிறு குழந்தைகளைப் பிடித்து சரயூ நதியில் மூழ்கடித்தான்; ஆகவே அவன் தந்தை கடுமையாகக் கண்டித்து அவனை இல்லத்திலிருந்து வெளியேற்றினான்.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Cruelty toward the innocent is adharma and must be checked even within a royal family; rightful authority (here, the father’s) may impose censure and exile to protect society and uphold dharma.
Bhishma recounts that the prince Asamanja habitually drowned citizens’ children in the Sarayū; as a consequence, his father rebuked him and expelled him from the home/kingdom.