Theory of Government in Ancient India (Post-Vedic) c6.176

c6.176

In one of its numberless discourses, the Mahābhārata gives a few ideas on the standard of good government. In the Sabhā-parva, the wandering sage Nārada alights on the court of the Pāṇḍavas and, in a string of interrogations, indicates how the realm should be governed. The king must diligently attend to his duties. The princes and nobles must be instructed by teachers versed in learning and ethics. The ministers must be pure in birth and blood, versed in the Śāstras, upright in behaviour, endowed with