Shloka 68
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय 33: धृतराष्ट्र-विदुर संवादः (विदुरनीतिः)
यः पज्चाभ्यन्तराउ्छत्रूनविजित्य मनोमयान् । जिगीषति रिपूनन्यान् रिपवो5भिभवन्ति तम्,जो चित्तके विकारभूत पाँच इन्द्रियरूपी भीतरी शत्रुओंको जीते बिना ही दूसरे शत्रुओंको जीतना चाहता है, उसे शत्रु पराजित कर देते हैं
yaḥ pañcābhyantarān śatrūn avijitya manomayān | jigīṣati ripūn anyān ripavo 'bhibhavanti tam ||
Vidura sagt: Wer, ohne zuvor die fünf inneren, aus dem Geist geborenen Feinde zu besiegen, andere äußere Feinde bezwingen will—den überwältigen jene Feinde. Die Lehre lautet: Selbstbeherrschung über Sinne und innere Regungen ist die wahre Voraussetzung für Sieg und Beständigkeit in weltlichen Konflikten.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
External victory is unreliable without inner victory: one must first subdue the five internal, mind-born enemies (often understood as the unruly senses and their impulses). Otherwise, a person becomes vulnerable and is defeated despite aiming to conquer others.
In Udyoga Parva, Vidura is giving moral and political counsel. Here he warns that a ruler or aspirant who tries to overcome opponents without first mastering inner passions and sense-driven tendencies will be overpowered—because inner disorder undermines judgment, discipline, and strategy.