Shloka 35
Mantri-Parīkṣā — Testing Ministers, Securing Counsel, and Ethical Criteria for Advisers (अध्याय ८४)
अनुजुस्त्वनुरक्तो5पि सम्पन्नश्वेतरैर्गुणै: । राज्ञ: प्रज्ञानयुक्तोडपि न मन्त्र श्रोतुमहति
anujuṣṭv anurakto 'pi sampannaś cānyair guṇaiḥ | rājñaḥ prajñāna-yukto 'pi na mantraṃ śrotum arhati ||
毗湿摩说道：纵使一人亲近君王、忠心依附，兼具诸德且聪慧过人，若其性情不坦直、不质朴而多机诈，亦不配聆听君王的机密谋议。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Loyalty, virtues, and intelligence are insufficient qualifications for hearing a king’s secret counsel; without straightforwardness and inner simplicity, a person is unfit for confidential deliberations because secrecy requires integrity, not merely capability.
In Shanti Parva, Bhishma instructs on rajadharma (the duties and policies of kings). Here he lays down a criterion for who may be admitted to the king’s private consultations, warning that even trusted and capable associates must be excluded if their nature is not guileless.