Strī Parva, Adhyāya 2 — Vidura’s Consolation on Kāla, Karma, and the Limits of Lamentation (विदुरोपदेशः)
शुभेन कर्मणा सौख्यं दु:ःखं पापेन कर्मणा । कृतं भवति सर्वत्र नाकृतं विद्यते क्वचित्,शुभकर्मसे सुख मिलता है और पापकर्मसे दुःख, सर्वत्र किये हुए कर्मका ही फल प्राप्त होता है, कहीं भी बिना कियेका नहीं
śubhena karmaṇā saukhyaṃ duḥkhaṃ pāpena karmaṇā | kṛtaṃ bhavati sarvatra nākṛtaṃ vidyate kvacit ||
Vidura teaches that happiness arises from virtuous action and suffering from sinful action. Everywhere, the results that come are those of deeds actually performed; nowhere does an unperformed act yield a consequence. In the aftermath of devastation, he frames grief and fortune alike within the moral law of karma and responsibility.
विदुर उवाच
Moral causality: happiness follows virtuous deeds and suffering follows sinful deeds; only performed actions bear fruit—no result arises without a corresponding act.
In Strī Parva’s lament-filled aftermath of the war, Vidura offers sober counsel, interpreting the experiences of joy and grief through the inevitability of karma and the ethical responsibility for one’s actions.