Shloka 21
Vidura’s Return; Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Departure; Nārada’s Instruction on Kāla and Detachment
पितृभ्रातृसुहृत्पुत्रा हतास्ते विगतं वयम् । आत्मा च जरया ग्रस्त: परगेहमुपाससे ॥ २१ ॥
pitṛ-bhrātṛ-suhṛt-putrā hatās te vigataṁ vayam ātmā ca jarayā grastaḥ para-geham upāsase
Your father, brother, well-wishers, and sons have all died and passed on. You too have spent the greater part of your life; your body is seized by old age, and you live in another’s home.
The King is reminded of his precarious condition, influenced by cruel time, and by his past experience he should have been more intelligent to see what was going to happen to his own life. His father, Vicitravīrya, died long ago, when he and his younger brothers were all little children, and it was due to the care and kindness of Bhīṣmadeva that they were properly brought up. Then again his brother Pāṇḍu died also. Then in the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra his one hundred sons and his grandsons all died, along with all other well-wishers like Bhīṣmadeva, Droṇācārya, Karṇa and many other kings and friends. So he had lost all men and money, and now he was living at the mercy of his nephew, whom he had put into troubles of various types. And despite all these reverses, he thought that he would prolong his life more and more. Vidura wanted to point out to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that everyone has to protect himself by his action and the grace of the Lord. One has to execute his duty faithfully, depending for the result on the supreme authority. No friend, no children, no father, no brother, no state and no one else can protect a person who is not protected by the Supreme Lord. One should, therefore, seek the protection of the Supreme Lord, for the human form of life is meant for seeking that protection. Dhṛtarāṣṭra was warned of his precarious conditions more and more by the following words.
FAQs
This verse teaches that when one’s prime has passed and the body is overtaken by old age, clinging to comfort and living dependently in another’s home is undignified; one should turn toward detachment and spiritual pursuit.
Vidura wanted to awaken Dhṛtarāṣṭra from complacency and attachment after the Kurukṣetra devastation, urging him to leave palace dependence and take up the path of renunciation before death arrived.
Reflect on life’s impermanence, reduce unhealthy dependence, simplify possessions and relationships, and prioritize sādhana—hearing, chanting, and purposeful living—especially as responsibilities wind down.