Shloka 16
Purohita-Niyoga and the Brahma–Kṣatra Concord
Aila–Kaśyapa Saṃvāda
स्त्रियं हत्वा ब्राह्मणं वापि पाप: सभायां यत्र लभते5नुवादम् । राज्ञ: सकाशे न बिभेति चापि ततो भयं विद्यते क्षत्रियस्थ
kaśyapa uvāca |
striyaṁ hatvā brāhmaṇaṁ vāpi pāpaḥ sabhāyāṁ yatra labhate ’nuvādam |
rājñaḥ sakāśe na bibheti cāpi tato bhayaṁ vidyate kṣatriyastha ||
迦叶波说：当一个罪人杀害妇女，甚至杀害婆罗门之后，竟在众会之中得人称许、受人赞颂；并且即使在国王面前，也对其恶行毫无畏惧与羞惭——那时，对刹帝利之王便会出现极其沉重的危机。因为当社会为暴行喝彩，而王权又不能加以约束时，依达摩而治的根基便遭到威胁。
कश्यप उवाच
Educational Q&A
A king’s greatest danger arises when grave sins (like killing a woman or a Brahmin) are socially applauded and go unpunished. Public endorsement of adharma and the ruler’s failure to inspire fear of wrongdoing undermine righteous order and threaten the stability of the realm.
Kashyapa is instructing on rājadharma: he describes a scenario where an evildoer commits heinous murder yet receives praise in an assembly and feels no fear even before the king. Kashyapa warns that such a breakdown of moral and legal restraint becomes a serious peril for the Kshatriya king and his rule.