Shloka 26
Gandhārī’s Lament for Bhūriśravas and Śakuni
Book 11, Chapter 24
मायया निकृतिप्रज्ञो जितवान् यो युधिष्ठिरम् । सभायां विपुलं राज्यं स पु]नर्जीवितं जित:,जो छलविद्याका पण्डित था, जिसने द्यूतसभामें मायाद्वारा युधिष्ठिर तथा उनके विशाल राज्यको जीत लिया था, वही फिर अपना जीवन भी हार गया
māyayā nikṛtiprajño jitavān yo yudhiṣṭhiram | sabhāyāṃ vipulaṃ rājyaṃ sa punar jīvitam api jitaḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana berkata: Lelaki yang mahir dalam tipu daya dan ilusi itu, yang telah menewaskan Yudhiṣṭhira dan merampas kerajaan baginda yang luas di balairung diraja—akhirnya pula ditewaskan, bahkan kehilangan nyawanya sendiri. Rangkap ini menegaskan pantulan moral adharma: kemenangan yang diraih melalui penipuan tidak berkekalan, dan si penipu akhirnya menemui kebinasaan.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Victory obtained through māyā (deceit) is unstable and morally self-defeating; adharma rebounds upon the doer, leading ultimately to downfall—even to the loss of life.
The narrator recalls the gambler who used deception to win Yudhiṣṭhira’s vast kingdom in the assembly; later, that same person is himself overcome and loses his life, highlighting retributive consequence in the epic’s moral frame.