Shloka 10

अक्षविजय-प्रसङ्गः

Escalation of Wagers and Shakuni’s Repeated Declarations of Victory

Devanagari script

युधिछिर उवाच द्यूते क्षत्त: कलहो विद्यते नः को वै द्यूत॑ रोचयेद्‌ बुध्यमान: । कि वा भवान्‌ मन्यते युक्तरूपं भवद्वाक्ये सर्व एव स्थिता: सम,युधिष्ठटिरने पूछा--विदुरजी! जूएमें तो झगड़ा-फसाद होता है। कौन समझदार मनुष्य जूआ खेलना पसंद करेगा अथवा आप क्या ठीक समझते हैं; हम सब लोग तो आपकी आज्ञाके अनुसार ही चलनेवाले हैं

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | dyūte kṣattaḥ kalaho vidyate naḥ ko vai dyūtaṃ rocayed budhyamānaḥ | kiṃ vā bhavān manyate yuktarūpaṃ bhavadvākye sarva eva sthitāḥ sma ||

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira nói: “Hỡi Kṣattṛ (Vidura), trong cờ bạc chỉ có cãi vã và xung đột—ai là người khôn ngoan, tỉnh táo, lại ưa thích trò xúc xắc? Xin hãy cho ta biết điều gì ngươi cho là đúng đắn và hợp lẽ; bởi tất cả chúng ta đều sẵn sàng hành động theo lời khuyên của ngươi.”

Word by Word

• {'dyūta': 'gambling

• dice-play', 'dyūte': 'in gambling (locative)', 'kṣattaḥ (kṣattṛ)': 'O chamberlain/counsellor

• epithet of Vidura', 'kalaha': 'quarrel, dispute, brawl', 'vidyate': 'is found, exists', 'naḥ': 'for us

• among us', 'ko vai': 'who indeed?', 'rocayet': 'would like, would take pleasure in', 'budhyamānaḥ': 'one who understands

• a discerning/wise person', 'kiṃ vā': 'or else

• and what?', 'bhavān': 'you (honorific)', 'manyate': 'thinks, considers', 'yuktarūpam': 'proper, appropriate, reasonable', 'bhavadvākye': 'in/according to your words

• by your advice', 'sarve eva': 'all indeed', 'sthitāḥ sma': 'we stand

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Vidura (Kṣattṛ)
• dice-play (dyūta)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Gambling is inherently prone to conflict; a wise person should be wary of it. Ethical action in a royal setting includes seeking sound counsel and aligning one’s conduct with what is reasonable and dharmic.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Vidura, acknowledging that dice-play leads to quarrels, and asks Vidura what course is proper. He affirms that he and the others are prepared to follow Vidura’s advice.