Shloka 65
बन्धुरात्मा55त्मनस्तस्य येनैवात्मा55त्मना जित: । स एव नियतो बन्धु: स एवानियतो रिपु:,जिसने स्वयं अपने आत्माको ही जीत लिया है, उसका आत्मा ही उसका बन्धु है। वही आत्मा जीता गया होनेपर सच्चा बन्धु और वही न जीता हुआ होनेपर शत्रु है
bandhur ātmā ātmanas tasya yenaivātmā ātmanā jitaḥ | sa eva niyato bandhuḥ sa evāniyato ripuḥ ||
Vidura teaches that a person’s truest ally is one’s own self—when mastered through self-discipline. That very self, if left ungoverned and unconquered, becomes an enemy, driving one toward ruin through uncontrolled impulses.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that inner discipline determines one’s fate: a controlled self becomes one’s closest ally, while an uncontrolled self becomes one’s enemy by leading to harmful choices.
In Vidura’s counsel during the Udyoga Parva, he offers ethical instruction aimed at restraining destructive impulses and guiding right conduct amid the escalating conflict.