Shloka 3
Udyoga Parva 142: Vidura’s warning to Kuntī and Kuntī’s resolve to meet Karṇa
Gaṅgātīra encounter begins
निमित्तं तत्र शकुनिरहं दुःशासनस्तथा । दुर्योधनश्व नृपतिर्धुतराष्ट्रसुतो5 भवत्,“महाबाहो! आप सब कुछ जानते हुए भी मुझे मोहमें क्यों डालना चाहते हैं? यह जो इस भूतलका पूर्णरूपसे विनाश उपस्थित हुआ है, उसमें मैं, शकुनि, दुःशासन तथा धृतराष्ट्रपुत्र राजा दुर्योधन निमित्तमात्र हुए हैं
nimittaṁ tatra śakunir ahaṁ duḥśāsanas tathā | duryodhanaś ca nṛpatir dhṛtarāṣṭrasuto 'bhavat ||
“In that catastrophe, Śakuni, I, and Duḥśāsana—as well as King Duryodhana, the son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra—became merely the instruments.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the distinction between being an immediate agent (nimitta) and being the ultimate cause. It raises an ethical question: even if one claims to be only an instrument in a larger unfolding, moral accountability for chosen actions remains significant in dharma-discourse.
Sañjaya reports a statement in which the speaker lists key Kaurava figures—Śakuni, Duḥśāsana, and Duryodhana—saying they became the instruments in the great destruction that has overtaken the world, framing the coming war’s devastation as already set in motion.