Verse 7.179

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

आयत्यां गुणदोषज्ञस्तदात्वे क्षिप्रनिश्चयः ।
अतीते कार्यशेषज्ञः शत्रुभिर्नाभिभूयते ॥ १७९ ॥

āyatyāṃ guṇadoṣajñastadātve kṣipraniścayaḥ |
atīte kāryaśeṣajñaḥ śatrubhirnābhibhūyate || 179 ||

He, who is alive to the good and bad points in re gard to the future, is quick in his decisions relating to the present, and understands the consequences of his acts in the past, is never overpowered by his enemies.—(179)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

Thus if a king knows the good and bad points of an act, likely to appear in the future, he would act with deliberation; and would undertake only such acts as are likely to develop good points, and avoid those likely to lead to evil. It is for this reason that the knowledge of the likely developments of an undertaking is necessary.

‘Relating to the present’;—he who takes quick decisions, and does not delay their execution, is said to be ‘quick in his decisions’; such a person is quick to act, and does what leads to good, and not what leads to evil:

‘In the past’;—when an act has been done, if the man judges the act by ite end only, he becomes great by reason of his undertaking only such acts as lead to good;—and he is ‘never overpowered by his enemies’.

As a matter of fact, it is not possible for the Six measures of Policy to be dealt with in detail in a work dealing with Dharma; hence the subject has been treated of only briefly.—(179)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Vīramitrodaya (Rājanīti, p. 328).