Shloka 82
Vidura-nīti: Atithi-dharma, Trust, Counsel-Secrecy, and Traits of Sustainable Rule
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 38
यस्य दानजित मित्र शत्रवो युधि निर्जिता: । अन्नपानजिता दारा: सफलं तस्य जीवितम्,जिसका मित्र धन-दानके द्वारा वशमें आ चुका है, शत्रु युद्धमें जीत लिये गये हैं और स्त्रियाँ खान-पानके द्वारा वशीभूत हो चुकी हैं, उसका जीवन सफल है अर्थात् सुखमय है
yasya dānajitā mitraśatravo yudhi nirjitāḥ | annapānajitā dārāḥ saphalaṃ tasya jīvitam ||
যাৰ বন্ধু দানে জয় কৰা, শত্রু যুদ্ধত পৰাজিত, আৰু পত্নী অন্ন-পানে বশীভূত—তাৰ জীৱন সফল বুলি কোৱা হয়।
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Vidura presents a pointed, ethically charged observation about worldly ‘success’: influence gained through gifts, victory in war, and domestic control through material provision. The verse can be read as a critique of reducing human relationships to instruments of power and pleasure, contrasting external prosperity with deeper dharmic ideals.
In the Udyoga Parva, Vidura speaks in the context of counsel and political-moral instruction during the tense pre-war negotiations. Here he articulates a worldly definition of a ‘successful life,’ highlighting the mechanisms by which a powerful man secures allies, defeats opponents, and maintains household compliance.