Shloka 8
चिरकारि-उपाख्यानम् / The Exemplum of Cirakārī: Deliberation Before Irreversible Action
यदास्य तद्धरन्त्यन्ये तदा राजानमिच्छति । तदा तेषां स्पृहयते ये वै तुष्टा: स्वकैर्धनै:
yadāsya tad dharantyanye tadā rājānam icchati | tadā teṣāṃ spṛhayate ye vai tuṣṭāḥ svakair dhanaiḥ ||
然而当他人连盗贼所盗之财也夺去时，那盗贼便渴望有一位国王——护民而惩盗者——从而体认到合法权威之必要。于此境地，他开始羡慕并向往那些安于己财、视触他人财物为罪的人。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a wrongdoer comes to value righteous governance when he experiences insecurity; the verse highlights the necessity of the king’s protective and punitive role and upholds contentment with one’s own wealth as an ethical ideal.
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma and governance, he uses the example of a thief: once the thief is himself robbed, he desires a king who restrains crime and then envies those who live honestly, satisfied with their own possessions.