Shloka 32
हिडिम्बश्न सखा महां दयितो वनगोचर: । हतो दुरात्मनानेन स्वसा चास्य हृता पुरा,“इसी प्रकार वनमें रहनेवाले मेरे प्रिय मित्र हिडिम्बको भी इस दुरात्माने मार डाला और उसकी बहिनका अपहरण कर लिया। ये सब बहुत पहलेकी बातें हैं
Hiḍimbaś ca sakhā mahān dayito vanagocaraḥ | hato durātmanānena svasā cāsya hṛtā purā ||
In the same way, my dear and noble friend Hiḍimba, who dwelt in the forest, was slain by this wicked man; and long ago his sister too was carried off. These are matters of the past, yet they reveal his enduring pattern of wrongdoing.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores ethical evaluation through past conduct: repeated acts of killing and abduction mark a person as durātman (wicked-souled). Remembering earlier wrongs is presented as a legitimate basis for moral judgment and caution.
The speaker recalls an earlier incident: a beloved forest-dwelling friend, Hiḍimba, was slain by “this wicked man,” and Hiḍimba’s sister was abducted long ago. The recollection is used to highlight a continuing pattern of wrongdoing.