Shloka 48
Ārjava, Satya, and the Virocana–Sudhanvan Exemplum
Udyoga-parva 35
चलानि हीमानि षडिन्द्रियाणि तेषां यद् यद् वर्धते यत्र यत्र । ततस्ततः ख्रवते बुद्धिरस्य छिद्रोदकुम्भादिव नित्यमम्भ:
calāni hīmāni ṣaḍindriyāṇi teṣāṃ yad yad vardhate yatra yatra | tatastataḥ kṣarate buddhir asya chidrodakumbhād iva nityam ambhaḥ ||
ヴィドゥラは言う。六つの感官はまことに移ろいやすく、絶えず動き回る。いずれの感官であれ強まり、いずれの対象へ走ろうとも、その方向へ人の分別は次第に漏れ失せてゆく—ひび割れた水甕から水が絶えず滴り落ちるように。教訓は、感官の放縦は判断力と自制を弱め、正法にかなう行いと健全な助言に不可欠なものを損なうということだ。
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
If the senses are allowed to chase their objects unchecked, a person’s buddhi (discernment) steadily weakens. Ethical living requires guarding the senses so that judgment remains firm and capable of choosing dharma over impulse.
In the Udyoga Parva’s counsel-setting, Vidura instructs and warns about inner discipline. He uses a vivid simile—water leaking from a cracked pot—to show how a ruler or any person loses clarity and stability when the senses dominate.