Shloka 17
पाण्डवानां वनप्रस्थानवर्णनम् / The Pāṇḍavas’ Departure for the Forest
Vidura’s Report and Portents
अतिद्यूतं कृतमिदं धार्तराष्ट्र यस्मात् स्त्रियं विवदध्वं सभायाम् । योगक्षेमौ नश्यतो वः समग्रौ पापान् मन्त्रान् कुरवो मन्त्रयन्ति
atidyūtaṁ kṛtam idaṁ dhārtarāṣṭra yasmāt striyaṁ vivadadhvaṁ sabhāyām | yogakṣemau naśyato vaḥ samagrau pāpān mantrān kuravo mantrayanti ||
Vidura said: “O Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, this has been an excessive and lawless game of dice. That is why, in the very midst of the royal assembly, you are disputing over a woman as though she were property. By this act your welfare and your security are being destroyed completely. Today it has become plain to all that the Kurus deliberate only on sinful counsels.”
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Vidura condemns gambling that violates moral and social limits and warns that treating a woman as an object of dispute in a public court is adharma. Such actions destroy a kingdom’s true welfare (yoga) and security (kṣema) and expose leaders as guided by sinful counsel.
After the dice game, the Kauravas bring Draupadī into the royal assembly and argue over her status and ownership. Vidura rebukes Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, declaring the dice-play excessive and unlawful and warning that their conduct is ruining their collective prosperity and safety.