Shloka 12
Vidura-nīti: Atithi-dharma, Trust, Counsel-Secrecy, and Traits of Sustainable Rule
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 38
सदोष॑ दर्शन येषां संवासे सुमहद् भयम् | अर्थादाने महान् दोष: प्रदाने च महद् भसम्
sadoṣa-darśanā yeṣāṁ saṁvāse sumahad bhayam | arthādāne mahān doṣaḥ pradāne ca mahad bhayam ||
Vidura sagt: „Diejenigen, deren bloße Gegenwart befleckt ist und deren Umgang große Gefahr bringt—Menschen, die in Verleumdung versunken sind, begierig zu verletzen und Zwietracht zu säen—laden schwere Schuld auf den, der von ihnen Reichtum annimmt; und ihnen zu geben ist ebenso von Furcht und Unheil umgeben.“
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should be vigilant about moral contagion: association with malicious, divisive people is dangerous, and financial dealings with them—whether taking or giving—carry ethical fault and practical peril.
In the Udyoga Parva, Vidura delivers counsel on righteous conduct (nīti), warning about the risks of keeping company with harmful persons and the consequences of engaging with their wealth.