Shloka 3
सभा-पर्व, अध्याय 56: विदुरस्य द्यूत-निन्दा
Vidura’s Censure of Dicing and Warning to the Kurus
अक्षान क्षिपन्नक्षतः सन् विद्वानविदुषो जये । ग्लहान् धनूंषि मे विद्धि शरानक्षांश्ष भारत
akṣān kṣipann akṣataḥ san vidvān aviduṣo jaye | glahān dhanūṃṣi me viddhi śarān akṣāṃś ca bhārata ||
मैं पासे फेंकता हुआ, स्वयं अक्षत रहकर, अपनी विद्या से अविद्वानों को जीत लूँगा। हे भारत! मेरे दाँवों को धनुष समझो और पासों को बाण।
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how adharma can masquerade as ‘skill’ and ‘strategy’: Duryodhana seeks victory without righteous confrontation, exploiting another’s weakness (ignorance of gambling) and redefining wagers and dice as weapons—an ethical warning about manipulative, rule-bending triumphs.
Duryodhana proposes defeating the Pāṇḍavas through a dice match rather than war. He boasts that, as an expert in gambling, he can win ‘unharmed,’ treating stakes as bows and dice as arrows—setting the stage for the fateful invitation to Yudhiṣṭhira.