Shloka 18
Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 132 — Vidura’s Counsel on Udyama, Yaśas, and Kṣātra-Dharma
उद्धावयस्व वीर्य वा तां वा गच्छ ध्रुवां गतिम् । धर्म पुत्राग्रतः कृत्वा किंनिमित्तं हि जीवसि
uddhāvayasva vīryaṃ vā tāṃ vā gaccha dhruvāṃ gatim | dharma-putrāgrataḥ kṛtvā kiṃ-nimittaṃ hi jīvasi
Wika ni Vāyu: “Gisingin mo ang iyong lakas at kumilos—kung hindi, humayo ka sa tiyak na wakas na iyon. Yamang inilagay mo sa unahan ang mga anak ni Dharma (ang mga Pāṇḍava), sa anong dahilan ka pa kumakapit sa buhay?”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
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.
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.