Shloka 9
Droṇa–Vidura–Gāndhārī Counsel in the Royal Assembly (धर्मार्थयुक्ता सभा-उपदेश-प्रकरणम्)
पिता यवीयानस्माकं क्षत्ता धर्मविदां वर: । पुत्रशोकाभिसंतप्त: किमाह धृतराष्ट्रजम्
pitā yavīyān asmākaṃ kṣattā dharmavidāṃ varaḥ | putraśokābhisaṃtaptaḥ kim āha dhṛtarāṣṭrajam ||
Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „Der jüngere Bruder unseres Vaters — Vidura, der Kṣattā, der Vornehmste unter den Kennern des Dharma — war vom Kummer um seinen Sohn verzehrt. Was sagte er zu Dhṛtarāṣṭras Sohn?“
युधिष्टिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a foremost knower of dharma (Vidura) can be overwhelmed by personal grief; yet the verse frames him as an ethical authority whose words to a powerful prince matter. It highlights the tension between private sorrow and public responsibility in dharmic counsel.
Yudhiṣṭhira inquires about what Vidura—described as their paternal uncle and the Kṣattā—said to Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s son, noting that Vidura was suffering intensely due to grief over his son.