Shloka 20
Dyūta-āhvāna: Śakuni’s Proposal, Vidura’s Warning, and the Summons of Yudhiṣṭhira
Sabhā-parva 51
प्रमाणरागसम्पन्नान् वड्क्षुतीरसमुद्धवान् । बल््यर्थ ददतस्तस्मै हिरण्यं रजतं बहु
pramāṇarāgasampannān vaḍkṣutīrasamudbhavān | balyarthaṃ dadatastasmai hiraṇyaṃ rajataṃ bahu
قال دُريودَهَنَة: «كانوا رجالًا ذوي مقامٍ لائقٍ وولاءٍ (لسيّدهم)، مولودين على ضفاف نهر ڤَدْكْصُو (Vaḍkṣu)؛ ولأجل الجزية كانوا يقدّمون له ذهبًا وفضّةً كثيرين.»
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how rulers measure and project power through tribute and material wealth, raising an implicit ethical question central to the Sabha Parva: whether legitimacy comes from dharma and justice or from dominance, display, and enforced allegiance.
Duryodhana is describing people associated with the Vaḍkṣu river region as respectable and loyal, and notes that they are paying substantial tribute—gold and silver—to a particular ruler, emphasizing the scale of wealth flowing into that ruler’s court.