History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v4.c62.470.4

v4.c62.470.4

Though Kauṭilya recommends all sorts of tricks and treachery for securing a victory, the Mahābhārata holds up a high ideal. The Bhīṣmaparva²⁷⁴ 21. 10 remarks that conquerors do not secure victory so much by their armies and prowess as by truthfulness, freedom from cruelty, the observance of dharma and energetic actions. The Śāntiparva (95. 17-18) states that it is better to die while fighting according to the rules of dharma rather than obtain a victory by wicked actions.