Shloka 18

Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 132 — Vidura’s Counsel on Udyama, Yaśas, and Kṣātra-Dharma

Devanagari script

उद्धावयस्व वीर्य वा तां वा गच्छ ध्रुवां गतिम्‌ । धर्म पुत्राग्रतः कृत्वा किंनिमित्तं हि जीवसि

Transliteration

uddhāvayasva vīryaṃ vā tāṃ vā gaccha dhruvāṃ gatim | dharma-putrāgrataḥ kṛtvā kiṃ-nimittaṃ hi jīvasi

Translation

ವಾಯು ಹೇಳಿದರು—“ನಿನ್ನ ವೀರ್ಯವನ್ನು ಜಾಗೃತಗೊಳಿಸಿ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ಕೆ ಪ್ರವೃತ್ತನಾಗು; ಇಲ್ಲವೇ ಆ ನಿಶ್ಚಿತ ಅಂತಿಮ ಗತಿಯನ್ನು ಸೇರು. ಧರ್ಮಪುತ್ರರನ್ನು (ಪಾಂಡವರನ್ನು) ಮುಂಚೆ ಇಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು, ನೀನು ಇನ್ನೂ ಯಾವ ಕಾರಣಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಜೀವಿಸುತ್ತಿರುವೆ?”

Word by Word

उद्धावयस्वdrive away / chase off

वीर्यम्valor, prowess

वाor

ताम्that (her/it)

वाor

गच्छgo

ध्रुवाम्certain, fixed

गतिम्course, destination

धर्मपुत्रDharma’s son (Yudhiṣṭhira)

अग्रतःin front of, before

कृत्वाhaving made / having placed

किम्what

निमित्तम्reason, cause

हिindeed, for

जीवसिyou live

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vāyu (Vāyudeva)

Dharma-putra(s) (sons of Dharma / Pāṇḍavas)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Life is justified by purposeful adherence to dharma: if one has vowed to place the righteous cause (the Dharma-sons/Pāṇḍavas) first, one must either act with full courage or accept the inevitable end rather than live in hesitation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva addresses a warrior-figure with a sharp exhortation: stop wavering—either summon heroic strength to fulfill the pledged duty toward the Dharma-sons (the Pāṇḍavas) or embrace the certain fate that comes from inaction and moral failure.