Shloka 16
Daṇḍa-svarūpa-nirūpaṇa
The Nature, Forms, and Function of Daṇḍa
नाशयेद् बलबहाणि संनिवासान् निवासयेत् । सदा बह्िनिभ: काम॑ प्रशस्तं कृतमाचरेत् । सर्वतश्नाददेत् प्रज्ञां पतंगं गहनेष्विव,शत्रुकी सेनाकी पाँख काट डाले--उसे दुर्बल कर दे, श्रेष्ठ पुरुषोंको अपने निकट बसावे। मोरके समान स्वेच्छानुसार उत्तम कार्य करे--जैसे मोर अपने पंख फैलाता है, उसी प्रकार अपने पक्ष (सेना और सहायकों) का विस्तार करे। सबसे बुद्धि--सद्दिचार ग्रहण करे और जैसे टिड्डियोंका दल जंगलमें जहाँ गिरता है, वहाँ वृक्षोंपर पत्तेतक नहीं छोड़ता, उसी प्रकार शत्रुओंपर आक्रमण करके उनका सर्वस्व नष्ट कर दे
bhīṣma uvāca | nāśayed balavāhāni saṁnivāsān nivāsayet | sadā vahni-nibhaḥ kāmaṁ praśastaṁ kṛtam ācaret | sarvataś cādadet prajñāṁ pataṅgaṁ gahaneṣv iva |
Wika ni Bhishma: “Dapat niyang wasakin ang mga pinagmumulan ng lakas at pagkilos ng kaaway, at magtatag ng matitibay na kampo at pamayanan para sa sarili. Laging gaya ng apoy sa sigla at pasya, gawin niya—ayon sa kanyang paghatol—ang kapuri-puri at mabisang gawain. Mula sa bawat panig, tipunin niya ang balita at praktikal na karunungan; at tulad ng pulutong ng balang na bumabagsak sa gubat, salakayin niya ang kaaway nang lubos na wala nang matira sa kanilang yaman at lakas.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches a kingly ethic of effective governance and warfare: weaken the enemy’s capacity (especially mobility and resources), secure one’s own bases, act with disciplined energy, and rely on wide-ranging intelligence and counsel—so that action is both strategically sound and aligned with what is ‘praśasta’ (commendable).
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on kingship and policy, Bhishma advises Yudhishthira on practical measures of rule and conflict: consolidate one’s own settlements and encampments, gather intelligence from all directions, and, when necessary in war, strike the enemy decisively—illustrated through similes of fire (forceful energy) and a locust-swarm (total depletion of the foe’s resources).