Shloka 18
Nīti-upadeśa to a Rājaputra: Self-restraint, Alliances, and Rival-Management (नीतिउपदेशः)
यज्ञदाने प्रशाध्यस्मै ब्राह्मणाननुवर्ण्य तान् । ते त्वां प्रतिकरिष्यन्ति तं भोक्ष्यन्ति वृका इव
bhīṣma uvāca | yajñadāne praśādhyasmai brāhmaṇān anuvarya tān | te tvāṃ pratikariṣyanti taṃ bhokṣyanti vṛkā iva ||
毗湿摩说道：“在祭祀与布施之事上，以称颂那些婆罗门并将他们荐于他，来笼络其心。他们必回报你的恩惠；并将那位毗提诃之王如群狼般啃噬殆尽。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma highlights a hard-edged lesson in statecraft: praise and patronage of influential religious elites can be used to sway a ruler toward costly sacrifices and gifts. The verse simultaneously implies an ethical warning—unchecked flattery and institutional power can turn into predation on the king’s resources, ‘like wolves’ consuming their prey.
Bhishma is giving counsel within the Shanti Parva’s discussions on governance and conduct. He describes a tactic: commend certain Brahmins to the king of Videha (associated with Mithila), thereby steering the king into grand rituals and donations; in return those Brahmins will favor the adviser, while the king becomes the one exploited.