Shloka 29
Dyūta-āhvāna: Śakuni’s Proposal, Vidura’s Warning, and the Summons of Yudhiṣṭhira
Sabhā-parva 51
रसान् गन्धांश्व विविधान् रत्नानि च सहस्रश: । बलिं च कृत्स्नमादाय द्वारि तिष्ठन्ति वारिता:
rasān gandhāṁś ca vividhān ratnāni ca sahasraśaḥ | baliṁ ca kṛtsnam ādāya dvāri tiṣṭhanti vāritāḥ ||
جاؤوا بألوانٍ من الأطايب والروائح العطرة، وبالجواهر بالآلاف، وحملوا الجزية كاملةً، فوقفوا عند الباب—مُنعوا وحيل بينهم وبين الدخول.
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how control over access and protocol can become an instrument of power and humiliation: even rightful tribute and gifts lose their meaning when people are deliberately barred, revealing the ethical danger of envy and the misuse of authority.
Duryodhana describes a scene in which bearers of tribute—laden with delicacies, perfumes, and countless jewels—arrive with the full offering but are stopped at the very gate, forced to wait outside, underscoring a grievance about exclusion and the politics of the court.