Shloka 25
अक्षदेवन-प्रवर्तनम् | Commencement of the Dice Game
अन्धेनेव युगं॑ नद्धं विपर्यस्तं नराधिप । कनीयांसो विवर्धन्ते ज्येष्ठा हीयन्त एव च
andhen eva yugaṃ naddhaṃ viparyastaṃ narādhipa | kanīyāṃso vivardhante jyeṣṭhā hīyanta eva ca ||
“Ó rei, esta era parece como se estivesse atada e conduzida por um destino cego; por isso tudo se encontra de cabeça para baixo. Os mais jovens e inferiores prosperam e se elevam, enquanto os mais velhos—os que deveriam estar à frente—declinam continuamente.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical idea that when dharma and proper social precedence are obscured—likened to being guided by blindness—society appears inverted: those who should be guided and restrained rise unchecked, while those who should lead and be honored are diminished. It warns of disorder when rightful norms of respect, merit, and seniority collapse.
Duryodhana laments to a kingly figure that the times have become perverse. His complaint frames his sense of injustice: he perceives that juniors or lesser persons are flourishing while seniors are losing status—an emotional and political grievance that feeds his hostility and fuels the unfolding conflict in the Sabha Parva context.