• dharmeṇa — religiously
  Instrumental of dharma. Not 'with a religion' but 'by means of dharma' — protection of the earth is itself a sacrament when its instrument is dharma.
• śīlena — by good character
  Śīla = settled disposition. Akrūra teaches that subjects are won not by spectacle but by the king's everyday character. Bhakti-shastras name śīla as a precondition for serving Bhagavān (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu lists it among saintly qualities).
• samaḥ — equally disposed
  Sama — the keyword of the whole counsel. Pre-figures Gītā 6.9 (sama-darśana) and Gītā 18.54 (samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu). Equanimity here is not philosophical pose but political duty.
• śreyaḥ — perfection
  From √śri, the root of śaraṇa — that which one leans toward, the highest good. Distinguished in Vedānta from preyas (the merely pleasant); Akrūra is offering the king the choice the Kaṭha Upaniṣad already named.

• Bhanu Sw SB 10-49-18 - Breaking the bonds of Attachment - 2007-03-07
  His Holiness Bhanu Swami· 2007-03-07· English
• LNS SB 10-49-18 - 2012-09-10 Mauritius
  His Holiness Lokanath Swami· 2012-09-10· English

• Which of dharma, conduct, equality do you most fail in your sphere of influence?
• Where could equal treatment of those you favor and disfavor become the work?

Akrūra holds up the picture of the ideal king the way a guru holds up a mirror to a student — not as accusation but as the form the listener could still grow into. Protect the earth, delight the citizens, weigh all relatives equally: three strokes of the brush, and the portrait of dharmic rule is complete.