Shloka 38
Mantri-Parīkṣā — Testing Ministers, Securing Counsel, and Ethical Criteria for Advisers (अध्याय ८४)
जो मूर्ख, अपवित्र, जड, शत्रुसेवी, बढ़-बढ़कर बातें बनानेवाला, क्रोधी और लोभी है तथा सुहृद् नहीं है, उसको भी गुप्त मन्त्रणा सुननेका अधिकार नहीं है ।।
bhīṣma uvāca | yo mūrkho 'pavitraḥ jaḍaḥ śatrusevī bāḍhaṁ bāḍhaṁ vākya-kartā krodhī ca lobhī ca na ca suhṛt, sa gupta-mantraṇā-śravaṇe 'nadhikārī | āgamagantuś cānurakto 'pi kāmam astu bahuśrutaḥ | satkṛtaḥ saṁvibhakto vā na mantraṁ śrotum arhati ||
毗湿摩说道：愚昧不洁、迟钝无识、事奉仇敌、言辞夸诞、易怒而贪婪，且并非真正怀善意之人——无权聆听机密谋议。即便有人情意殷勤，博通多种论典，为众人所敬，并受厚赐；但若是新来之人（尚未经考验），亦不堪参与秘密商议。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Confidential deliberation must be shared only with proven, trustworthy well-wishers. Moral flaws (greed, anger, impurity, enemy-alignment, boastfulness) disqualify a person; even learning and honor do not compensate for lack of tested reliability, especially in a newcomer.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on governance and conduct, Bhishma lays down criteria for selecting who may be admitted to secret strategic discussions, warning that both bad character and untested familiarity can endanger counsel.