Shloka 1
Adhyāya 6: Vidura’s Saṃsāra-Upamā
The Allegory of the Well, Time, and Desire
अफ्-४#-राज षष्ठो& ध्याय: संसाररूपी वनके रूपकका स्पष्टीकरण ध्ृतराष्ट्र ववाच अहो खलु महद् दु:खं कृच्छुवासश्न॒ तस्य ह | कथं तस्य रतिस्तत्र तुष्टिवां वदतां वर,धृतराष्ट्र बोले--वक्ताओंमें श्रेष्ठ विदुर! यह तो बड़े आश्वर्यकी बात है! उस ब्राह्मणको तो महान् दुःख प्राप्त हुआ था। वह बड़े कष्टसे वहाँ रह रहा था तो भी वहाँ कैसे उसका मन लगता था और कैसे उसे संतोष होता था?
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | aho khalu mahad duḥkhaṁ kṛcchravāsaś ca tasya ha | kathaṁ tasya ratis tatra tuṣṭir vā vadatāṁ vara ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “Alas, that was indeed great suffering, and his dwelling there was truly under hardship. O best of speakers, how could he still take delight in that place, and how could he find contentment there?”
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical-philosophical problem: how inner contentment (tuṣṭi) and even a kind of mental inclination (rati) can persist despite external hardship. It prepares for Vidura’s explanation that true satisfaction can arise from right understanding, restraint, and dharmic orientation rather than from comfortable circumstances.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra, addressing Vidura as the foremost speaker, reacts to the account of a brāhmaṇa who endured severe misery and difficult living conditions. He asks how that person could still feel attachment or delight in that place and maintain contentment, prompting further clarification of the allegorical teaching.