Shloka 43
उद्योगपर्व — विदुरनीतिः (Adhyāya 37): आयुःक्षयहेतवः, नीतिसूत्राणि, बलभेदाः, पाण्डव-विग्रहदोषदर्शनम्
यत्र स्त्री यत्र कितवो बालो यत्रानुशासिता । मज्जन्ति तेडवशा राजन् नद्यामश्मप्लवा इव
yatra strī yatra kitavo bālo yatrānuśāsitā | majjanti te'vaśā rājan nadyām aśmaplavā iva ||
Vidura memberi amaran kepada raja bahawa sebuah negeri yang kuasanya pada hakikatnya berada di tangan seorang wanita, seorang penjudi, atau seorang kanak-kanak, pasti menuju kebinasaan yang tidak berdaya. Rakyatnya, tanpa pemerintahan yang teguh dan pertimbangan yang waras, akan tenggelam dalam bencana seperti orang yang cuba menyeberangi sungai dengan perahu batu.
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Governance must rest on mature discernment and self-control; when power is effectively driven by immaturity or vice (symbolized by a child and a gambler) or by improper influence, society becomes helpless and collapses—like trusting a stone boat that cannot float.
In Udyoga Parva, Vidura counsels the king during the tense pre-war negotiations. He delivers moral-political instruction (nīti), warning that a kingdom misruled by unfit or destabilizing influences will inevitably plunge its people into disaster.