Shloka 12
असंतोष ही लक्ष्मीकी प्राप्तिका मूल कारण है; अतः मैं असंतोष चाहता हूँ। राजन्! जो अपनी उन्नतिके लिये प्रयत्न करता है, उसका वह प्रयत्न ही सर्वोत्तम नीति है ।।
asaṁtoṣo hi lakṣmyāḥ prāptikā mūla-kāraṇam; ataḥ aham asaṁtoṣam icchāmi. rājan! yaḥ svasyonnatyai prayatate, tasya sa prayatna eva śreṣṭhā nītiḥ. mamatvaṁ hi na kartavyam aiśvarye vā dhane ’pi vā; pūrvāvāptaṁ haranty anye—rāja-dharma hi taṁ viduḥ.
杜尤陀那说道：“不满足乃是得取富贵的根本缘由；因此我宁取不满足。大王，对于谋求自身上升者而言，那份奋力本身便是最上之策。不可对王权或财宝生出执著的占有心，因为先前所得，终会被他人以强力夺去；这——我说——便是人们所理解的王者之道。”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents a hard-edged political ethic: prosperity is driven by persistent dissatisfaction and effort, while attachment to wealth or sovereignty is portrayed as unwise because power and property are unstable and can be seized. It contrasts ‘striving’ (prayatna) as the best nīti with the futility of possessiveness (mamatva) in royal life.
In the Sabha Parva context, Duryodhana articulates his worldview to the king he addresses: he justifies relentless ambition and frames the competitive, coercive nature of kingship as normal ‘rāja-dharma.’ The statement reveals his mindset—restless desire for increase and a readiness to accept force and dispossession as part of political order.