Shloka 29

Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 132 — Vidura’s Counsel on Udyama, Yaśas, and Kṣātra-Dharma

Devanagari script

अवल्गुकारिणं सत्सु कुलवंशस्थ नाशनम्‌

Transliteration

avalgukāriṇaṃ satsu kulavaṃśastha nāśanam

Translation

Vāyu-deva declares that one who behaves in a base and contemptible manner among the virtuous becomes a destroyer of the family line and its established order—bringing ruin upon the very lineage in which he stands.

Word by Word

• अवल्गुकारिणम्: one who behaves basely / a slanderer (lit. one who does अवल्गु)
• अवल्गुकारिणम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अवल्गुकारिन्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• सत्सु: among the good / among the virtuous
• सत्सु: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Plural

• कुलवंशस्थ: situated in (one's) family and lineage
• कुलवंशस्थ: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कुलवंशस्थ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• नाशनम्: destruction / ruin
• नाशनम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाशन
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu-deva (Wind-god)
• sat (the virtuous/good people)
• kula-vaṃśa (family lineage)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Base conduct, especially in the presence of the virtuous, is not a private failing—it becomes socially destructive, capable of ruining a clan’s moral standing and continuity of dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu-deva is speaking a moral judgment: he characterizes a contemptible person as one who brings about the destruction of the family line, emphasizing the communal consequences of unethical behavior.