Shloka 23
Udyoga Parva Adhyaya 62 — Duryodhana’s Claim of Victory and Vidura’s Allegories on Discord and Risk
शकुनीनामिवाकाशे पदं नैवोपलभ्यते । एवं प्रज्ञानतृप्तस्य मुनेर्वर्त्म न दृश्यते,जैसे आकाशमें पक्षियोंके चरणचिह्न नहीं दिखायी देते हैं, वैसे ही ज्ञानानन्दसे तृप्त मुनिका मार्ग दृष्टिगोचर नहीं होता है अर्थात् समझमें नहीं आता है
śakunīnām ivākāśe padaṃ naivopalabhyate | evaṃ prajñāna-tṛptasya muner vartma na dṛśyate ||
Vidura dice: Así como no se halla en el cielo abierto la huella de las aves, del mismo modo no se distingue el camino del sabio colmado por la sabiduría. Los verdaderamente sabios se mueven sin dejar las marcas habituales de la ambición, el apego o la ostentación; su conducta es guiada por la visión interior, no por motivos mundanos previsibles.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
A person fulfilled by wisdom is not easily read or predicted by ordinary social cues; their actions leave no ‘tracks’ of craving, ego, or attachment. This points to inner freedom and non-attachment as marks of true insight.
In Vidura’s counsel (Vidura-nīti) during the Udyoga Parva, he teaches through a metaphor: as birds leave no footprints in the sky, so the realized sage’s path cannot be traced by worldly observers—highlighting the subtlety of genuine virtue and wisdom.