(This series unravels the dharmic dialogue between Narada Muni and Raja Yudhishthira in the Sabha Parva of Mahabharata. Part V dealt with the balancing of the four purusharthas, Part VI follows.)
After imploring Yudhishthira to balance the pursuit of dharma, artha and kama, Narada Muni emphasised that the role of a seeker is round-the-clock. The sight of moksha should never be lost on a seeker. Following this, we get a glimpse of Narada Muni as a leader and administrator, like we have never seen before. He asks the king, ‘O unblemished one, do you use your six royal qualities to judge the seven means?’
For this, let us first understand what the seven means of engagement are. The first four might be familiar to many – saama, daana, bheda and dhanda. Saama is the art of negotiation, daana is the act of giving (incentives), bheda is to instil fear and dhanda is to punish. Fifth is maya, or trickery. Sixth is upeksha, or neglect. And finally, seventh is indrajaal, or black magic.
For this, let us first understand what the seven means of engagement are. The first four might be familiar to many – saama, daana, bheda and dhanda. Saama is the art of negotiation, daana is the act of giving (incentives), bheda is to instil fear and dhanda is to punish. Fifth is maya, or trickery. Sixth is upeksha, or neglect. And finally, seventh is indrajaal, or black magic.
Whenever someone approaches us for a transaction, one or many of the above means are indeed employed. There is sweet talk, an offer, a threat, a punishment, some illusion or even neglect. Sometimes, we can see these patterns being adopted even between countries. At the international level, a trade sanction could be a combination of bheda, dhanda and upeksha. We know how much it can affect the morale and the economy of a country. Many of these techniques work just as well at the individual level too. People resort to voodoo, deceit or black magic, even in these times!
So, Narada’s question was if Yudhishtira uses the six qualities to filter how others engage with him. The first of the six qualities is ‘cleverness of speech’: a king or leader should know how to engage intelligently. Just by communicating firmly and pleasantly, a leader can know which of the seven means the opponent is using. We see it displayed by leaders at world summits like the United Nations General Assembly. The second quality is ‘readiness (to deploy resources)’. Kings or leaders should know how to mobilise and utilise their resources – wealth, army, people, produce. When the British ruled over India, the kings failed to recognise this and trapped the nation into a man-made famine. The colonisers wilfully depleted agricultural produce or made it unaffordable for Indians. Yet the leaders of that time couldn’t prevent it from happening. A leader should be aware of the resources available with them, ready to be deployed during contingencies.
The third quality is ‘intelligence in dealing with the enemy’. A king must be well-informed about the enemy’s tactics and strengths. The leader must be skilled to deal with whatever strategies are used by the opponents. The CBI, KGB, FBI, etc. are not new. Spies have always been a part of the administration. It is to stay fully informed and always ahead of the opponent. Early information gives an unassailable advantage. The fourth quality is ‘good memory’. This is not individual memory, but institutional memory. Mistakes of the past, achievements of the past, setbacks of the past, all of it must be documented and shared with the forthcoming generations. Narada asks Yudhishtira if he has documented what has worked for him and what has not. This could even be as much as keeping tabs on who was forgiven, who was awarded and who is taking advantage of the leader.
The fifth quality is ‘knowledge of dharma shastra’. The definition of dharma is vast - duty, righteousness, religion, essence and so on. But being established in dharma means that one is aware of their duties and roles. The elders of the court must be established in dharma before they offer counsel to the king. Only a righteous leader will know how to engage with others when they use saama, daana, bheda, dhanda, maya, upeksha or indrajaal.
The last of the six qualities is using ‘state policy’ or rajniti. The laws of the land and the principles that govern them must suffice to protect the leader and empower their vision. The state policy must be effective enough to quell the attempts of the enemy as well as keep the leader unaffected.
Thereby Narada Muni pushes Yudhishtira to reflect whether he employs his six qualities as a leader to engage at a transactional level. Leaders of organisations, community leaders and administrators of a country would do well to make these assessments for themselves in today’s world too.
