Shloka 94
Adhyaya 32: Saṃjaya’s Return, Audience with Dhṛtarāṣṭra, and Ethical Admonition
ब्राह्मणस्वानि चादत्ते ब्राह्मणांश्न जिघांसति । रमते निन्दया चैषां प्रशंसां नाभिनन्दति,विनाशके मुखमें पड़नेवाले मनुष्यके आठ पूर्वचिह्न हैं--प्रथम तो वह ब्राह्मणोंसे द्वेष करता है, फिर उनके विरोधका पात्र बनता है, ब्राह्मणोंका धन हड़प लेता है, उनको मारना चाहता है, ब्राह्मणोंकी निन्दामें आनन्द मानता है, उनकी प्रशंसा सुनना नहीं चाहता, यज्ञ- यागादिमें उनका स्मरण नहीं करता तथा कुछ माँगनेपर उनमें दोष निकालने लगता है। इन सब दोषोंको बुद्धिमान् मनुष्य समझे और समझकर त्याग दे
brāhmaṇasvānī ca ādatte brāhmaṇāṁś ca jighāṁsati | ramate nindayā ca eṣāṁ praśaṁsāṁ nābhinandati ||
Vidura says: A man headed for ruin shows clear fore-signs: he seizes what belongs to Brahmins, he even wishes to kill Brahmins; he delights in disparaging them and does not welcome their praise. The ethical warning is that hostility toward the virtuous and contempt for sacred learning and its bearers is not merely a social fault—it is a symptom of inner collapse that leads to self-destruction.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Vidura identifies moral red flags of impending ruin: exploiting the righteous, harboring violence toward them, and taking pleasure in slander while rejecting their praise. The teaching is that contempt for dharma and its custodians corrodes character and leads to downfall.
In Udyoga Parva, Vidura offers nīti-counsel in the tense pre-war context, warning about behaviors that signal a person (and by extension a ruler or polity) is moving toward destruction. This verse lists specific attitudes and actions directed against Brahmins as such ominous signs.