Shloka 186
अशक्यमयशस्यं च कर्तु कर्म समुद्यता: । सात्यकिका यह वचन सुनकर दूरदर्शी विदुरने कौरवसभामें महाबाहु धृतराष्ट्रसे कहा --'परंतप नरेश! जान पड़ता है, आपके सभी पुत्र सर्वथा कालके अधीन हो गये हैं। इसीलिये वे यह अकीर्तिकारक और असम्भव कर्म करनेको उतारू हुए हैं
Aśakyam ayaśasyaṃ ca kartuṃ karma samudyatāḥ. Sātyakikā idaṃ vacanaṃ śrutvā dūradarśī viduro ne kouravasabhāyāṃ mahābāhu dhṛtarāṣṭraṃ uvāca—“Parantapa nareśa! jānīyate, tava sarve putrāḥ sarvathā kālasya vaśaṃ gatāḥ; tasmād ete ’kīrtikaraṃ ca aśakyaṃ ca karma kartuṃ pravṛttāḥ.”
Mereka telah bersiap melakukan suatu perbuatan yang mustahil dan memalukan. Mendengar kata-kata Sātyaki, Vidura yang berpandangan jauh berkata kepada Dhṛtarāṣṭra yang berlengan perkasa di sidang Kuru: “Wahai raja, penakluk musuh! Tampaknya semua putra-padukalah telah sepenuhnya berada di bawah kuasa Kāla (takdir). Itulah sebabnya mereka nekat menempuh perbuatan yang membawa aib dan tak mungkin terlaksana.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Vidura warns that when leaders and their heirs fall under the sway of Kāla (Time/fate)—often a poetic way of describing moral decline and inevitable consequence—they attempt actions that are both unethical (bringing infamy) and ultimately self-defeating. The verse highlights the duty of wise counsel: to name dishonour as dishonour and to caution rulers against choices that violate dharma and invite ruin.
In the Kuru court, after Sātyaki’s statement, Vidura—known for clear moral vision—turns to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra and interprets the Kauravas’ aggressive resolve as a sign that the king’s sons are overtaken by the force of Time. He frames their intended course as an impossible and disgraceful undertaking, foreshadowing the catastrophic trajectory toward war.