Shloka 66

Drupada’s Instruction to the Purohita for the Kaurava Embassy (द्रुपदोपदेशः दूतप्रेषणम्)

Devanagari script

अनक्षज्ञं मताक्ष: सन्‌ क्षत्रवृत्ते स्थितं शुचिम्‌ । विदुरजीके अनुनय-विनय करनेपर भी धूृतराष्ट्र अपने पुत्रका ही अनुसरण करते हैं। शकुनिने स्वयं जूएके खेलमें प्रवीण होकर यह जानते हुए भी कि युधिष्ठिर जूएके खिलाड़ी नहीं हैं

Transliteration

anakṣajñaṃ matākṣaḥ san kṣatravṛtte sthitaṃ śucim | vidurajīke anunaya-vinaya karanepara bhī dhṛtarāṣṭra apane putrakā hī anusaraṇa karate haiṃ | śakunine svayaṃ jūeke khelameṃ pravīṇa hokara yaha jānatē huē bhī ki yudhiṣṭhira jūeke khilāṛī nahīṃ haiṃ, ve kṣatriyadharmapara calanevāle śuddhātmā puruṣa haiṃ, unheṃ samajha-būjhakara jūeke liye bulāyā

Translation

Drupada dit : «Bien que Yudhiṣṭhira ne fût pas versé dans le jeu de dés, il était pur de conduite et solidement établi dans le dharma des kṣatriya. Même lorsque Vidura supplia avec humilité et raison, Dhṛtarāṣṭra ne suivit que la voie de ses fils. Et Śakuni—habile au jeu de dés—tout en sachant que Yudhiṣṭhira n’était pas un joueur mais un homme à l’âme nette, marchant dans le dharma kṣatriya, le fit sciemment appeler au défi des dés.»

Word by Word

• {'an-akṣa-jña': 'not knowledgeable about dice

• inexperienced in gambling', 'akṣa': 'die (dice)

• also ‘axle’ in other contexts', 'kṣatra-vṛtti': 'the conduct/way of life proper to a Kṣatriya', 'sthita': 'standing

• abiding in', 'śuci': 'pure

• morally untainted', 'anunaya': 'conciliation

• appeasement', 'vinaya': 'humility

• modest conduct', 'dhṛtarāṣṭra': 'Dhṛtarāṣṭra (the Kuru king, father of the Kauravas)', 'putra-anusaraṇa': 'following one’s sons

• siding with one’s children', 'śakuni': 'Śakuni (Gāndhāra prince

• expert dice-player)', 'jūta / jūe kā khela': 'game of dice

• gambling match', 'pravīṇa': 'skilled

• proficient', 'yudhiṣṭhira': 'Yudhiṣṭhira (eldest Pāṇḍava)', 'śuddha-ātmā': 'pure-souled

• of uncorrupted inner nature', 'samajha-būjhakara': 'knowingly

• deliberately', 'bulāyā': 'summoned

Speaker

दुपद उवाच

Characters & Entities

• दुपद (Drupada)
• युधिष्ठिर (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• विदुर (Vidura)
• धृतराष्ट्र (Dhṛtarāṣṭra)
• शकुनि (Śakuni)
• जुआ/अक्ष (dice; gambling)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The passage highlights ethical failure in governance: wise counsel (Vidura’s) is ignored due to attachment to one’s own (Dhṛtarāṣṭra following his sons), while a skilled manipulator (Śakuni) exploits another’s dharmic disposition (Yudhiṣṭhira’s Kṣatriya sense of obligation) to draw him into an unrighteous contest.

What is happening in the narrative?

Drupada criticizes the Kuru court’s conduct: despite Vidura’s attempts at conciliatory, humble persuasion, Dhṛtarāṣṭra sides with his sons; Śakuni, expert at dice, knowingly calls the dice-inexperienced yet upright Yudhiṣṭhira to a gambling match, setting the stage for injustice.