Shloka 14
सभा-पर्व, अध्याय 56: विदुरस्य द्यूत-निन्दा
Vidura’s Censure of Dicing and Warning to the Kurus
स्वर्गद्वारं दीव्यतां नो विशिष्ट तद्धर्तिनां चापि तथैव युक्तम् । भवेदेवं हात्मना तुल्यमेव दुरोदरं पाण्डवैस्त्वं कुरुष्व
svargadvāraṁ dīvyatāṁ no viśiṣṭa taddhartināṁ cāpi tathaiva yuktam | bhaved evaṁ hātmanā tulyam eva durūdaraṁ pāṇḍavais tvaṁ kuruṣva ||
Duryodhana sprach: „O Erhabener, lasst das Spiel für uns wie ein Tor zum Himmel sein; und es ziemt sich, dass jene, die den Ehrenkodex des Spiels wahren, auch entsprechend handeln. So soll es sein — auf gleichen Bedingungen, ohne Vorteil. Richte das Würfelspiel mit den Pāṇḍavas in fairer Weise aus.“
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames gambling as something that should be governed by propriety and equality, highlighting the ethical tension between the ideal of fair play and the political use of the dice-game as a tool to harm rivals.
Duryodhana urges that the dice-game with the Pāṇḍavas be arranged and played, presenting it as ‘proper’ and insisting on ‘equal terms’—a claim that, in the broader Sabha Parva context, contrasts with the later manipulation of the game.