Shloka 336
Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 132 — Vidura’s Counsel on Udyama, Yaśas, and Kṣātra-Dharma
अनुत्थानभये चोभे निरीहो नाश्षुते महत् । संतोष, दया, उद्योगशून्यता और भय--ये सम्पत्तिका नाश करनेवाले हैं। निश्चेष्ट मनुष्य कभी कोई महत्त्वपूर्ण पद नहीं पा सकता
anutthānabhaye cobhe nirīho nāśnute mahat |
Vāyu said: One who is inactive and afraid to rise to action attains nothing great. Contentment that turns into complacency, misplaced pity, lack of enterprise, and fear—these are forces that ruin prosperity; a man without effort never reaches a position of real consequence.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Great outcomes require initiative and effort; fear and inertia prevent attainment. The verse warns that complacent contentment, misplaced pity, lack of enterprise, and fear can destroy prosperity and block advancement.
Vāyudeva is speaking in a didactic, nīti-oriented passage of the Udyoga Parva, emphasizing practical ethics: one must not remain passive or fearful when duty and opportunity demand decisive action.