In the previous episode, we had witnessed a very important accord from Arjuna to Yudishtra, emphasizing the fact that a leader’s success is a direct measure of how ably and swiftly he / she can punish offenders. In this context, Arjuna explains to Yudishtra that a king’s first and foremost duty is to punish those who walk the path of “Adharma”, and that is exactly what Yudishtra himself has done through the war at Kurukshetra. Hence, there is nothing to feel sorry about here. Duryodhana and Co. had walked the path of “Adharma” for many years now, and it was high time that Yudishtra punished all of them for their misdeeds. Hence, Arjuna explains that Yudishtra has to continue performing his duty in this way, so that “Dharma” will rule the kingdom. This is a very important point even for today’s context. We can see that those countries wherein the law implementation is very strict, crime rate will be very less. However, in countries like India wherein judiciary is a mere joke, with an obsolete law having enormous loopholes, crime rates are extremely high! Thus, the bigger question is asked towards the leader of the country for all the mess that is happening. If the judicial system is so rotten, with even simple cases lasting for more than ten years, pending investigation and verdict, how can we expect “Dharma-Paripaalanam” in such places? This is for the present administration to seriously have a re-think.
Saying thus, Arjuna continues further to emphasize this point even deeper. He says thus, “Oh Yudishtra! You are thinking that giving punishments to people is equivalent to hurting someone. It’s actually wrong! The world cannot function if there are no punishments for wrongdoings. For instance, if a king announces that from tomorrow onwards, all punishments in the kingdom are repealed and not applicable, what will happen to the people? There will be utter anarchy and chaos everywhere! People will start doing anything and everything to get whatever they desire. There will be nobody to question wrong and sinful acts! This can never be the case anywhere in the world! As per the “Kshatrya Dharma”, it is the duty of the king to give punishments to those who are performing sinful acts. Brahmana Rishis are not eligible for providing punishments! It is only the “Kshatryas” who are given the mettle in the hand to give punishments to wrongdoers!”
We might wonder through this accord of Arjuna as to why only Kshatryas are entitled to give punishments. This might sound a bit controversial here, but there is a deeper meaning to this. For instance, if a Brahmana Rishi is running a “Veda-Paatashaala” and a lot of disciples are learning the Vedas – For instance, if some of the students are not reciting the Vedas as per the rules and regulations, the Guru will not punish the disciples. Rather, the Guru will go to the king and report that these disciples are not learning the Vedas properly. Accordingly, the king is the one who calls for an enquiry and gives justice and punishment. This system was there in practice during earlier times, and the purpose behind it is that there will be a “fear factor” in all the disciples to learn the Vedas correctly and propagate them to the world. As a “Kshatrya”, correct propagation of the Vedas in the kingdom is his duty and the king has to ensure that it happens seamlessly. If someone is going against it, a king is liable to give punishments. Secondly, this practice establishes the fact that whatever happens in the “Gurukula”, the king is directly monitoring the progress. This will ensure accountability for both the Guru (to teach properly) and for the disciples (to learn properly). This is exactly what Arjuna says here. When he mentions that nothing in this world can be proper without a strict code of punishments, he explains that people should have that psychological “fear factor” at the back of their minds while performing their duties.
For instance, even in corporate organizations today, we have a “Performance appraisal system”, which fixes accountability for employee’s’ performance at the job. Employees are constantly monitored by the organization’s top management and the low performers are identified, provided training & development facilities. Even after that, if the performance doesn’t improve, the low performers are thrown out of the organization, aren’t they? Similarly, if there are some ethical wrongdoings, there are definitive “moral & ethical codes of conduct” in every organization, which governs decision-making. There will be dedicated committees to investigate such ethical and moral issues and to recommend necessary action. Thus, the overall point here is that, only where there are strict “codes of conduct”, will there be “Dharma” getting established! So for today, let us understand up to this point, and we shall continue with this discussion further in the next episode as well! Stay tuned! 🙂
The Indian Dharma 