Shloka 156
Saṃsāra-mārga-vistaraḥ
Vidura’s Expanded Account of the Path
भ्रममाणा न मुहान्ति संसारे न भ्रमन्ति ते । किंतु जो संयमशील होकर बुद्धिके द्वारा उन इन्द्रियरूपी अश्वोंको काबूमें रखते हैं, वे फिर इस संसारमें नहीं लौटते। जो लोग चक्रकी भाँति घूमनेवाले इस संसारचक्रमें घूमते हुए भी मोहके वशीभूत नहीं होते हैं, उन्हें फिर संसारमें नहीं भटकना पड़ता
bhramamāṇā na muhānti saṃsāre na bhramanti te | kintu ye saṃyamaśīlāḥ buddhyā indriyarūpān aśvān kābūṃ kurvanti, te punaḥ asmin saṃsāre na nivartante | ye cakravat parivartamāne 'smin saṃsāracakre paribhramantaḥ api mohavaśībhūtā na bhavanti, teṣāṃ punaḥ saṃsāre na paribhramaṇam |
Vidura teaches that those who, though moving amid the whirl of worldly life, do not fall into delusion are not truly lost in saṃsāra. Rather, the self-controlled—who rein in the horse-like senses by the guidance of intellect—do not return again to this cycle. Even while living within the turning wheel of the world, if one is not mastered by मोह (bewildering attachment), one need not wander again in repeated worldly roaming.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Freedom from repeated wandering in saṃsāra comes through saṃyama (restraint): using buddhi (discernment) to master the senses, and refusing to be overpowered by moha (delusion/attachment), even while living amid worldly motion.
In the Stree Parva’s grief-filled aftermath of war, Vidura speaks as a moral counselor, redirecting attention from turmoil and sorrow toward inner discipline—teaching that the true escape from suffering is not external change but mastery of mind and senses.