Shloka 35
Vidura-nīti: Atithi-dharma, Trust, Counsel-Secrecy, and Traits of Sustainable Rule
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 38
पापोदयफल विद्वान् यो नारभति वर्धते । यस्तु पूर्वकृतं पापमविमृश्यानुवर्तते । अगाधपड़के दुर्मेधा विषमे विनिपात्यते
pāpodayaphala-vidvān yo nārabhati vardhate | yastu pūrvakṛtaṃ pāpam avimṛśyānuvartate | agādapaṅke durmedhā viṣame vinipātyate ||
Vidura says: The wise person who does not initiate actions that ripen into sinful consequences prospers. But one who, without reflecting, continues to follow the sinful course established by past misdeeds—such a person, of corrupted understanding, is cast down into a dreadful, uneven abyss like deep mire (a metaphor for hellish ruin).
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Do not initiate deeds that bear sinful results; prosperity follows restraint and discernment. Persisting in past sinful patterns without reflection leads to moral and existential downfall.
In Udyoga Parva, Vidura delivers ethical counsel (nīti) as tensions move toward war; here he warns that unreflective continuation of wrongdoing brings ruin, while wise restraint brings growth.