Shloka 30
Vyavahāra-Śuddhi and Rājadharma: Clean Administration, Counsel, and Proportional Punishment
Chapter 86
धर्मशास्त्रार्थतत्त्वज्ञ: संधिविग्रहिको भवेत् । मतिमान् धृतिमान् ह्वीमान् रहस्यविनिगूहिता
dharmśāstrārthatattvajñaḥ sandhivigrahiko bhavet | matimān dhṛtimān hrīmān rahasyavinigūhitā ||
毗湿摩说道：大臣当真知《法论》(Dharmaśāstra)之旨趣与要义，明辨何时当议和、何时当用兵；又须聪慧、坚毅、谦谨知耻，并能守口如瓶，秘藏谋议。具此德者，方为上等辅弼；而统军之将亦当具备同样的品格。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma defines the ideal adviser (and by extension the commander) as a person grounded in dharma, skilled in judging peace versus conflict, and marked by intelligence, firmness, modest self-restraint, and the ability to keep confidential counsel—ethical character and strategic discernment must go together.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on righteous governance. Here he lists the essential qualifications of a minister and notes that a सेनापति (commander) should likewise embody these virtues, linking moral discipline with effective state leadership.