Shloka 13
Vyavahāra-Śuddhi and Rājadharma: Clean Administration, Counsel, and Proportional Punishment
Chapter 86
न चापि गूढं द्रव्यं ते ग्राह्मे कार्योपघातकम् । कार्य खलु विपन्ने त्वां सो<धर्मस्तांश्व पीडयेत्
na cāpi gūḍhaṃ dravyaṃ te grāhyaṃ kāryopaghātakam | kāryaṃ khalu vipanne tvāṃ so 'dharmas tāṃś ca pīḍayet, rājan ||
毗湿摩说道：“你也不可接受任何隐秘之财，因为那会败坏你正当的职责——施行公正与治理之业。若你的公职之道果真被毁，那不法（adharma）本身将加害于你，王啊，并且也会使你的大臣们遭受巨大痛苦。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler must not accept concealed or illicit wealth (a covert gift or bribe), because it damages the king’s kārya—his public duty of justice and administration. When governance is compromised, adharma rebounds upon the king and spreads harm to his ministers as well.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhīṣma continues advising the king (Yudhiṣṭhira) on ethical governance. Here he warns against taking secret wealth, emphasizing that such corruption destroys rightful state duty and brings suffering to the ruler and his counsellors.