Shloka 17
Kośārtha-Rājadharma: Ethical Revenue Collection and Social Regulation (कोशार्थ-राजधर्मः)
सर्वे तथानुजीवेयुर्न कुर्यु: कर्म चेदिह । सर्व एव इमे लोका न भवेयुरसंशयम्
sarve tathānujīveyur na kuryuḥ karma ced iha | sarva eva ime lokā na bhaveyur asaṁśayam ||
毗湿摩说道：若世人被允许仅以那种方式维生（不事劳作而靠乞求度日），便无人再肯有所作为。如此境况之下，这一切世界——整个人间秩序——必将无疑难以延续。
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma emphasizes that society cannot be sustained if people abandon productive duty and try to live without work; the continuity of the world depends on everyone undertaking appropriate karma (responsible action).
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma is instructing Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and the foundations of social stability; here he argues that a system that encourages non-workful subsistence would collapse society, so duty and labor are necessary for the world’s maintenance.