Shloka 46
हंस–साध्यसंवादः, वाक्-निग्रहः, महाकुल-लक्षणम्, शान्ति-उपायः
Hamsa–Sādhya Dialogue; Restraint of Speech; Marks of Noble Lineage; Means to Peace
न स्याद् वनमृते व्याप्रान् व्याप्रा न स्पुरनते वनम् । वन हि रक्ष्यते व्याघ्रैव्याच्रान् रक्षति काननम्
na syād vanam ṛte vyāghrān vyāghrā na spṛśanti vanam | vanaṃ hi rakṣyate vyāghrair vyāghrān rakṣati kānanam ||
วิทุระกล่าวว่า—“พงไพรย่อมดำรงอยู่ไม่ได้หากไร้พยัคฆ์ และพยัคฆ์ก็ย่อมรุ่งเรืองไม่ได้หากไร้พงไพร เพราะพยัคฆ์พิทักษ์พงไพร และพงไพรก็พิทักษ์พยัคฆ์”
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Mutual dependence sustains order: protectors and the protected uphold each other. In ethical-political terms, a kingdom needs strong guardians, and those guardians need a stable realm; harming either side destroys both.
In Vidura’s counsel during the Udyoga Parva, he uses a vivid analogy—forest and tigers—to warn that a polity (or community) and its defenders/elites are bound together; wise governance preserves this balance rather than undermining it.