Shloka 30
Udyoga-parva Adhyāya 34 — Vidura’s Counsel on Deliberation, Speech-Discipline, and Dharmic Kingship
प्रह्माद उवाच अथ यो नैव प्रब्रूयात् सत्यं वा यदि वानृतम् । एतत् सुधन्वन् पृच्छामि दुर्विवक्ता सम कि वसेत्,प्रह्नमादने कहा--सुधन्वन्! अब मैं तुमसे यह बात पूछता हूँ--जो सत्य न बोले अथवा अस॒त्य निर्णय करे, ऐसे दुष्ट वक्ताकी क्या स्थिति होती है?
Prahlāda uvāca: atha yo naiva prabrūyāt satyaṃ vā yadi vānṛtam | etat sudhanvan pṛcchāmi durvivaktā sa kiṃ vaset ||
Prahrāda dit : «À présent, Sudhanvan, je te demande ceci : que devient un mauvais parleur—celui qui ne dit pas la vérité, ou celui qui, appelé à trancher, rend un jugement mensonger ?»
प्रह्माद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the dharma of truthful speech and truthful adjudication: refusing to speak truth, or issuing a false decision, is treated as grave moral failure, inviting serious consequences for the wrongdoer.
Prahlāda addresses Sudhanvan and poses an ethical question about the fate or condition of a ‘durvivaktā’—a person who either withholds truth or pronounces falsehood in a decision—setting up a discussion on moral accountability.