THE MAHABHARATA: A Modern Rendering, Vol 2 (83 page)

Honest men, who are perfectly trustworthy, must be appointed to administer justice in the kingdom. If they are corrupt, the nation becomes weak. The old adage is so true, Yudhishtira: that the king makes the age; and not the other way, that the age makes the king.

Yet, the four yugas have their different natures and gifts to bestow on the earth. The age when the kings of the world rule entirely by the Neeti Shastra is called the satya or the krita yuga. Dharma prevails perfectly in this yuga and evil is unknown. It is an age when there is hardly any need for a king. The earth yields food without being tilled or sown and life-giving herbs and sacred plants, which cure every disease, grow abundantly. Sickness hardly exists during the halcyon krita and men live long lives. Every season is full of delight and peace and harmony suffuse the earth and its rulers reign immaculately by the Dandaneeti.

Then, comes an age when the king rules with three parts of dharma and one of darkness. This is the treta yuga. The earth no longer yields food on her own, but waits to be tilled. The third yuga is the dwapara and its sovereigns employ a half part of dharma to rule and the other half adharma, evil. The earth gives only half of what she can and the foods she yields are only half as nourishing as they once were. The herbs of healing, also, have lost their power by half and men too have lost half their dignity, strength and splendor.

In the last age, the kali yuga, the kings of the earth oppress their own people. Adharma is the rule of the day and hardly a fourth of the Dandaneeti is used. The earth is governed by anarchy and violence. All kinds of diseases sweep the world and men live short, harsh lives. The men of this yuga are diminished in every respect; indeed, they are hardly men in the sense that men of old were. They are creatures of darkness, their hearts ruined by greed, lust, malice and envy. The clouds do not bring the rain in season; drought and famine have their way with the world.

These are the yugas, Yudhishtira and the king is said to cause them.”

“Pitama, the king is the lord of wealth. Whose wealth does he own?”

“The Vedas say that the wealth of all men, except brahmanas, belongs to the king. It is the king’s dharma to support the holy ones, who bless the kingdom.”

The Pandava asked, “No king can accomplish even the smallest task by himself, but he needs his ministers. What are the traits and the dharma of the king’s ministers? What kind of men are worthy of being ministers?”

Bheeshma says, “A king is usually surrounded by four kinds of men. The first kind is the one whose opinion is always the same as his own, dharma or not. The second kind is the man who is sincerely devoted to his sovereign. The third is related by blood; and the fourth may be those who began as enemies, but have been won over with gifts.

There is also a fifth man, who serves only dharma. This fifth kind is rigid and a king should exercise caution while confiding in him. A king has to rule not only with dharma, but with adharma, too; and the fifth kind of friend or minister will censure him whenever he uses the dark ways. He might even betray him.

Most important is choosing the ministers with whom a king will surround himself. When power and position are involved, no man can be trusted entirely. A dishonest man can appear honest and an honest man, a villain. Power also changes men. A man who was scrupulously honest can be corrupted by power and become dishonest. Thus, no one must be trusted implicitly. Yet, a king cannot be unduly suspicious either. He must blend trust with mistrust, judiciously. He should use one minister to spy on another.

But of all those close to him, a king should fear his own blood like death. A kinsman always considers himself the king’s equal or his superior and he is more envious than anyone else. His own kinsman cannot bear to see a king prosper.” A wry smile twitches at the Kuru patriarch’s lips. He says, “But you know all about that, Yudhishtira. Yet, a king needs his kinsmen more than anyone else. With them, also, he must behave as if he trusts them completely, but in truth he must always be watchful.”

Yudhishtira asks, “What kind of men should be made legislators? What qualities should the ministers of war have? Which men should be a king’s courtiers and which ones his counselors?”

“The legislators should be modest, restrained men; they must be honest and sincere and have the courage of truth with them at all times. The ministers for war must be men who are close to the king, ever at his side. Most of all, they must be brave men and kshatriyas. They must be learned, too and their only fault should be their excessive love for their master. A courtier should be from the noblest lineage and the king must always treat him with honor. He, also, must be one who is always loyal, a man who never abandons his sovereign, whatever the circumstances.

The officers of the army must be from noble stock and born in the king’s own country. Let them be handsome, learned and powerful men, so they inspire loyalty and devotion in their soldiers. They must be of impeccable conduct and, above everything else, loyal.

As counselors a king must have four brahmanas, learned in the Vedas, all of them snatakas and dignified past reproach. He must have eight kshatriyas, strong men and proficient warriors. He must have twenty-one vaishyas, all wealthy, three sudras, pure, humble and intelligent and one suta. Remember that these counselors must all be above fifty years of age.

Among a king’s main tasks is to punish those that commit crimes in his land. The wealthy criminal should have his riches or property taken from him, while the poor criminal should be imprisoned. Corporal punishment may be used to check the more hardened law-breakers.

A good king levies taxes as a bee gathers pollen from flowers: gently, without injuring his people. He is like a tigress who grips her cubs firmly in her teeth, but never hurts them.”

Bheeshma imparts his treasure of wisdom to Yudhishtira over many days. There is much he shares that has not been recorded: for, at times, he speaks in secret. At dusk, the Pandavas go back to Hasti-napura and they return each morning with the sun.

Once, Yudhishtira asks, “Pitama, tell me again how a king should conduct himself.”

“Dharma must be his very life, for there is nothing greater than dharma in the world. Dharma makes one king better than another; and, with dharma, a king can conquer the earth. Remember his ministers must be men of dharma, as well, as pure as he is; and their truth should radiate, by word and by deed, throughout the land. Malice has no place in a king’s heart. His senses must be perfectly subdued. He must love his people as a father does his children and he should use his intelligence without passion. Then, his reign will be glorious and his greatness swell like a sea fed by a thousand rivers.”

Yudhishtira says, “The way of dharma is long, it is said to have a hundred branches. Which are the main duties to be followed?”

“First of all, the mother, the father and the guru must be worshipped and what they command must be obeyed without question. Serving his father helps a man cross the sea of samsara, serving his mother raises him up into Devaloka and serving the guru bestows the realm of Brahma on a sishya.”

“Tell me about dharma, artha and kama, Pitama. Which of them helps take one’s life in the right direction?”

“The three exist together; they are indivisible when a man creates artha, wealth, for himself, always treading the path of dharma. Wealth is rooted in virtue and kama, pleasure, is the fruit of wealth. All these come to be by the effort of a man’s will. In this world, there are objects created for the gratification of the senses and the acquisition of these is the will’s concern.

When a man is unattached to the objects of pleasure, he is liberated. One needs virtue, punya, to protect the body. One requires wealth to be virtuous. However, dharma, artha and kama must never be pursued just for themselves, but always as a means to knowledge: the knowledge of the Self. Virtue must be acquired not for pleasure, but to purify the soul. Wealth must be acquired so it can be spent with perfect relinquishment and pleasure must be pursued not to gratify the body but only to support it.

Thus, dharma, artha and kama are founded in the will and all three are necessary means to an end. The end is moksha, the final goal, the only one. As a man approaches moksha, he must abandon dharma, artha and kama by tapasya, ascetic penance.”

FIVE
DHARMA 

Another time, Yudhishtira asks, “They say intelligence is superior to everything else. Intelligence helps a man plan for the future, to provide for it; with intelligence, a man meets every emergency. Pitama, tell me about intelligence and how it used. Especially when a king is beset by many enemies, how does he protect himself with intelligence?”

“When a king is in distress, he often finds that a friend becomes a foe and an enemy a friend. There are times when fate makes everything uncertain and a king hardly knows what to do. There are times when an enemy must be befriended and times when a friend must be treated as an enemy. What a king does depends on the times and the king who does not hesitate to do what the time demands seldom fails. While a king who is unbending, seldom succeeds.

Of course, a man must be investigated thoroughly, before he is accepted as a friend. Enemies must be studied even more carefully, their every strength and weakness examined. In this life, which is a play of masks, often friends appear in the guise of foes and foes disguised as friends. The terms friend and enemy are relative: when a man suits one’s interests, he is a friend; when he opposes them, he is an enemy. If a man serves one’s purpose as long as he lives, he is a lifelong friend. Ultimately, friendship and enmity are matters of self-interest.

Selfishness is the most powerful impulse in every man: the world turns on this pivot. No man is precious to another unless he stands to gain by him. Of course, men’s needs are varied and one man is popular because he is liberal-minded, another because he is sweet-tongued and a third because he is religious. Like-minded people generally become friends, until time changes their affections. It is the rule and not the exception that friendships last as long as they serve some purpose. As soon as the reason for the friendship ends, so does the friendship itself.

An intelligent man knows when to make peace with an enemy. When two enemies become friends, it is obvious that each one only bides his time until he can get the better of the other. And it is invariably true that the wiser and the more patient of the two is the one that succeeds. Until the proper opportunity presents itself, you must pretend there is no one dearer to you than your enemy, no one you trust as much. When the time comes, never hesitate to wage war! Yudhishtira, this policy applies not only with enemies, but friends as well.”

Another day, Yudhishtira asks, “Pitama, what is the font of sin? From where does evil spring?”

“Greed is the single root of evil. Greed destroys dharma and punya. From this single spring the river of sin flows. When a man covets, he becomes full of hypocrisy and cunning. Anger and lust come from covetousness and so do a hundred other sicknesses of the mind. The loss of judgement comes from it, deception, arrogance, malice, vindictiveness, shamelessness, the loss of virtue, anxiety and infamy all spring from covetousness. These are not all. Miserliness, cupidity, arrogance of birth, arrogance of learning, of beauty, of wealth, every impropriety, harshness of speech, speaking ill of others, ruthlessness, malevolence, insincerity, gluttony, a love of lies, indeed, a love of every kind of sin: all sprout from the root of covetousness. My son, no man in this world has been able to relinquish greed. Life on earth may decay, men may diminish in numbers and stature; but the power of greed will never fade. Even the greatest men, those of deep learning, whose minds are a treasury of the scriptures, those who are so able at advising others: these are found wanting when it comes to managing their own lives. Greed nestles in their hearts and makes them weak and cowardly, its slaves.”

“Tell me about ignorance, Pitama,” says Yudhishtira.

“Ignorance, too, springs from the same covetousness. As greed grows, so does ignorance and the mind becomes dark and hardly sees clearly any more.”

Yudhishtira is thoughtful, then asks, “What are the first duties of a king, which must have precedence over the rest?”

“Restraint is the quintessential dharma. Just as giving in to his greed leads a man to every sin, restraining himself leads him to glory. From restraint come the virtues of compassion, forgiveness, patience, mercy, impartiality, truth, sincerity, humility, modesty, steadiness, tolerance and liberality, serenity, contentment, sweetness of speech, benevolence and a heart free of malice. A restrained man will never be a slave to the attachments of this world, nor to his greed. Once he learns to restrain himself, he is already upon the threshold of moksha.”

“Tell me about the truth, my lord, if you are not tired.”

Bheeshma smiles. “All my pain and tiredness left me, when Krishna blessed me. Truth is the dharma not just of kings, but every human being. Truth is the eternal dharma; it is the final sanctuary, the last tapasya. Truth is the highest yoga; why, it is the immortal Brahman. There is no yagna as profound as truth: the three worlds are founded in truth and nothing else.

There are many aspects to truth, Yudhishtira. Impartiality, self-control, forgiveness, modesty, endurance, goodness, renunciation, contemplation, dignity, fortitude, compassion and non-violence are some. But the Truth itself is single, eternal, immutable.”