Shloka 60

Sabhā Parva, Adhyāya 68 — Pāṇḍavānāṃ Vanavāsa-prasthānaḥ; Duḥśāsana-nindā; Pāṇḍava-pratijñāḥ

Devanagari script

विदुरजी बोले--इस सभामें पधारे हुए भूपालगण! ट्रुपदकुमारी कृष्णा यहाँ अपना प्रश्न उपस्थित करके इस तरह अनाथकी भाँति रो रही है; परंतु आपलोग उसका विवेचन नहीं करते, अतः यहाँ धर्मकी हानि हो रही है ।।

Transliteration

vidura uvāca—sabhyāḥ, draupadī kṛṣṇā iha svapraśnaṃ nidhāya anāthavat krandati; yūyaṃ tu tasya vicāraṇaṃ na kurutha, ataḥ sabhāyāṃ dharmakṣayaḥ. sabhāṃ prapadyate hārtaḥ prajvalann iva havyavāṭ | taṃ vai satyena dharmeṇa sabhyāḥ praśamayanty uta ||

Translation

Vidura sprach: „O Älteste der Versammlung und versammelte Könige! Hier hat Draupadī, Kṛṣṇā, die Tochter Drupadas, euch ihre Frage vorgelegt und weint wie eine Schutzlose; doch ihr beratet sie nicht. Darum wird in diesem Hof selbst der Dharma geschmälert. Ein Verwundeter, von Kummer Gezeichneter, kommt in die Versammlung wie ein loderndes Opferfeuer; es ist Sache der Mitglieder des Hofes, diese Not durch Wahrheit und Rechtschaffenheit zu besänftigen und zu schlichten.“

Word by Word

• {'vidura uvāca': 'Vidura said', 'sabhā / sabhām': 'assembly hall

• royal court', 'sabhyāḥ': 'members of the assembly

• courtiers/elders', 'prapadyate': 'approaches

• comes before', 'hārtaḥ': 'afflicted

• distressed', 'prajvalan': 'blazing

• flaring up', 'iva': 'like

• as if', 'havyavāṭ': 'sacrificial fire/altar-fire (homa-fire)', 'satya': 'truth

• truthful conduct', 'dharma': 'righteousness

• duty/justice', 'praśamayanti': 'they pacify

• resolve', 'uta': 'indeed

Speaker

विदुर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vidura
• Draupadī (Kṛṣṇā)
• Sabhā (royal assembly/court)
• Havyavāṭ (sacrificial fire)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A royal assembly exists to uphold dharma: when a wronged person seeks judgment, the courtiers must respond with satya (truth) and dharma (righteous justice). Silence or evasion in the face of injustice itself becomes a loss of dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Kaurava court, Draupadī has posed a decisive legal-ethical question and is crying as if unprotected. Vidura rebukes the assembled kings and elders for not examining her question, warning that their inaction is causing dharma to decline in the very sabhā meant to safeguard it.