Shloka 36
दुर्योधनस्य बलिवर्णनम् — Duryodhana’s Description of Tribute at the Rājasūya
दैवमेव परं मन्ये पौरुषं च निरर्थकम् | दृष्टवा कुन्तीसुते शुद्धां श्रियं तामहतां तथा
daivam eva paraṁ manye pauruṣaṁ ca nirarthakam | dṛṣṭvā kuntīsute śuddhāṁ śriyaṁ tām ahatāṁ tathā ||
Duryodhana sprach: „Ich halte allein das Schicksal für das Höchste und menschliches Bemühen für nichtig. Denn ich habe an Yudhiṣṭhira, dem Sohn der Kuntī, einen reinen, unangreifbaren Wohlstand gesehen—einen unerschöpflichen Vorrat an Glück—trotz aller Versuche, ihn zu schmälern.“
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a classic tension between daiva (fate/divine ordinance) and pauruṣa (human effort). Duryodhana, seeing Yudhiṣṭhira’s undiminished prosperity, concludes that destiny overrules personal striving—an outlook that can excuse unethical choices by shifting responsibility away from one’s own agency.
In the Sabha Parva context, Duryodhana reflects on the Pandavas’ rising fortune and Yudhiṣṭhira’s seemingly inexhaustible royal prosperity. His observation turns into a fatalistic complaint: despite opposition, Yudhiṣṭhira’s ‘pure’ śrī remains intact, leading Duryodhana to credit fate rather than merit or effort.