Shloka 33
न बुद्धिर्धनलाभाय न जाड्यमसमृद्धये । लोकपर्याय वृत्तान्तं प्राज्ञो जानाति नेतर:,बुद्धिसे धन प्राप्त होता है और मूर्खता दरिद्रताका कारण है--ऐसा कोई नियम नहीं है। संसारचक्रके वृत्तान्तको केवल दिद्वान् पुरुष ही जानते हैं, दूसरेलोग नहीं
na buddhir dhanālābhāya na jāḍyam asamṛddhaye | lokaparyāya-vṛttāntaṁ prājño jānāti netaraḥ ||
Vidura said: Intelligence does not invariably lead to the gaining of wealth, nor does dullness inevitably result in poverty. Only the truly wise understand the turning of the world’s cycles and the ways by which events unfold; others do not.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Vidura teaches that worldly outcomes like wealth and poverty do not follow a simple moral or intellectual rule (intelligence = wealth, stupidity = poverty). The deeper lesson is to cultivate discernment about the changing patterns of the world (lokaparyāya), rather than assuming life always rewards merit in a straightforward way.
In the Udyoga Parva’s counsel-setting, Vidura speaks as a moral advisor, offering sober instruction about how society and fortune operate. He emphasizes that only the truly wise can read the shifting course of events, implying the need for prudent, dharmic judgment amid political uncertainty.