Shloka 6
Daṇḍotpatti-kathana (Origin and Function of Daṇḍa) — वसुहोम–मान्धातृ संवाद
जागर्ति च कथं दण्ड: प्रजास्ववहितात्मक: । कश्न पूर्वापरमिदं जागर्ति प्रतिपालयन्
jāgarti ca kathaṃ daṇḍaḥ prajāsva-vahita-ātmakaḥ | kaś ca pūrvāparam idaṃ jāgarti pratipālayan ||
尤提士提罗问道：“檀陀既以护念众生为意，如何常住警觉而不懈？又是谁在守望之中护持这整个世界——前后相续的秩序——使之得以保存？”
युधिछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames governance (daṇḍa) as vigilant, welfare-oriented discipline, and raises the deeper question of what ultimate principle sustains moral and temporal order—implying that just rule mirrors a higher, watchful order that preserves the world.
In the Śānti Parva’s discourse on rājadharma, Yudhiṣṭhira questions how the ruler’s coercive authority can remain constantly alert for the people’s good, and he asks who (or what) continually safeguards the world’s ordered continuity.