Shloka 62
Vidura-nīti: Atithi-dharma, Trust, Counsel-Secrecy, and Traits of Sustainable Rule
Udyoga Parva, Adhyāya 38
आर्जवेन नर युक्तमार्जवात् सव्यपत्रपम् | अशक्तं मन्यमानास्तु धर्षयन्ति कुबुद्धयः,दुष्ट बुद्धिवाले लोग सरलतासे युक्त और सरलताके ही कारण लज्जाशील मनुष्यको अशक्त मानकर उसका तिरस्कार करते हैं
ārjavena nara yuktam ārjavāt savyapatrapam | aśaktaṃ manyamānās tu dharṣayanti kubuddhayaḥ ||
Vidura says: A man endowed with straightforwardness becomes, by that very simplicity, modest and restrained. But people of perverted understanding, mistaking such modesty for weakness, proceed to insult and oppress him.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
True simplicity and modesty are virtues, but the foolish often misread them as weakness; therefore one should recognize this social tendency and protect the virtuous from unjust contempt.
Vidura is offering moral counsel (nīti) in the Udyoga Parva, warning about how wicked people behave toward the gentle and straightforward, especially in tense political circumstances preceding the great conflict.