Shloka 236
Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 132 — Vidura’s Counsel on Udyama, Yaśas, and Kṣātra-Dharma
विद्यायामर्थलाभे वा मातुरुच्चार एव स: । दान, तपस्या, सत्यभाषण, विद्या तथा धनोपार्जनमें जिसके सुयशका सर्वत्र बखान नहीं होता है, वह मनुष्य अपनी माताका पुत्र नहीं, मल-मूत्रमात्र ही है
vidyāyām arthalābhe vā mātur uccāra eva saḥ |
Vāyu said: “Whether in learning or in the gaining of wealth, the one whose good fame is not proclaimed everywhere is, in truth, no real son of his mother—he is merely like excrement and urine.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
A person’s learning and prosperity should culminate in widely recognized good repute grounded in virtue; without such acknowledged merit, one’s life is portrayed as futile and dishonoring one’s birth.
Vāyu delivers a sharp moral judgment, contrasting true sonship—validated by virtuous achievement and public esteem—with a life lacking honorable renown, which he condemns as worthless.