Shloka 161
Śuka’s Guṇa-Transcendence and Vyāsa’s Consolation (शुकगति-वर्णनम्)
नास्त्यसाधारणो राजा नास्ति राज्यमराजकम् | राज्येडसति कुतो धर्मो धर्मेडसति कुत: परम्
nāsty asādhāraṇo rājā nāsti rājyam arājakam | rājyed asati kuto dharmo dharmed asati kutaḥ param ||
毗湿摩宣示：“不可能有一位国王脱离共同秩序而独立存在；也不可能有一个国度在无王之下长久。若无稳固的政体，正法（dharma）从何得以维系？若正法崩坏，又如何得证至上者？”
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma depends on stable governance: without a ruler and an ordered polity, social and moral life deteriorate; and without dharma, the highest spiritual attainment (the Supreme) becomes inaccessible.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on statecraft and ethics, Bhīṣma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira that kingship and political order are not merely administrative but foundational for protecting dharma and enabling the people’s pursuit of the highest good.