Shloka 11
याज्ञसेनी-प्रश्नः
Draupadī’s Question in the Assembly
त्यजेत् कुलार्थ पुरुषं ग्रामस्यार्थे कुलं त्यजेत् । ग्रामं जनपदस्यार्थ आत्मार्थे पृथिवीं त्यजेत्
tyajet kulārthaṁ puruṣaṁ grāmasyārthe kulaṁ tyajet | grāmaṁ janapadasyārtha ātmārthe pṛthivīṁ tyajet ||
Vidura teaches a graded ethic of sacrifice for the greater good: for the welfare of a whole family one may give up a single individual; for the welfare of a village one may relinquish a family; for the welfare of a realm one may abandon a village; and for one’s own highest spiritual good—the soul’s liberation—one should be ready to renounce even the entire earth.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
A hierarchy of values: protect the larger collective over the smaller (individual < family < village < realm), but place the soul’s highest good above all worldly holdings—even sovereignty over the earth.
In the Sabha Parva’s counsel-setting, Vidura speaks as a moral advisor, offering niti (statecraft-ethics) that guides rulers and households on when hard renunciations are justified for public welfare and for ultimate spiritual aims.