Shloka 11
राजवृत्त-रक्षा-प्रणिधि-षाड्गुण्योपदेशः
Royal Conduct, Protection, Intelligence, and Policy Measures
यथा हानुदके मत्स्या निराक्रन्दे विहड़मा: । विहरेयुर्यथाकामं विहिंसन्त: पुनः पुनः:
yathā hānudake matsyā nirākrande vihaṅgamāḥ | vihareyur yathākāmaṃ vihiṃsantaḥ punaḥ punaḥ ||
婆苏摩那说道：“正如浅水之中的鱼，守护全无的林苑之中群鸟，任意游走却一再相互伤害——时而以击打碾碎搅乱他者，时而自身受击而痛苦不安——同样，大王啊，不久它们便被驱至几近毁灭，此无可疑。照此而论，若无国王，诸臣民很快便会陷入相互争斗与败亡，像无牧者的牛群一般，沉入苦难那可怖的黑暗。”
वसुमना उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse argues that kingship (lawful governance) is necessary to prevent society from collapsing into mutual violence; without a ruler, people—like creatures in constrained or unprotected conditions—harm one another and rapidly decline.
Vasumanā addresses a king and uses vivid analogies (fish in scant water, birds in an unguarded grove) to illustrate how, in the absence of protection and restraint, beings fight repeatedly and become ruined—paralleling what happens to subjects when there is no king.