पौरेषु तु निवृत्तेषु विदुरः सर्वधर्मवित् ॥
बोधयन् पाण्डवश्रेष्ठम् इदं वचनम् अब्रवीत् ॥
प्राज्ञः प्राज्ञं प्रलापज्ञः सम्यग् धर्मार्थदर्शिवान् ॥
विज्ञायेदं तथा कुर्याद् आपदं निस्तरेद् यथा ॥
अलोहं निशितं शस्त्रं शरीरपरिकर्तनम् ॥
यो वेत्ति न तम् आघ्नन्ति प्रतिघातविदं द्विषः ॥
कक्षघ्नः शिशिरघ्नश् च महाकक्षे बिलौकसः ॥
न दहेद् इति चात्मानं यो रक्षति स जीवति ॥
नाचक्षुर् वेत्ति पन्थानं नाचक्षुर् विन्दते दिशः ॥
नाधृतिर् भूतिम् आप्नोति बुध्यस्वैवं प्रबोधितः ॥
अनाप्तैर् दत्तम् आदत्ते नरः शस्त्रम् अलोहजम् ॥
श्वाविच् छरणम् आसाद्य प्रमुच्येत हुताशनात् ॥
चरन् मार्गान् विजानाति नक्षत्रैर् विन्दते दिशः ॥
आत्मना चात्मनः पञ्च पीडयन् नानुपीड्यते ॥
paureṣu tu nivṛtteṣu viduraḥ sarvadharmavit ||
bodhayan pāṇḍavaśreṣṭham idaṃ vacanam abravīt ||
prājñaḥ prājñaṃ pralāpajñaḥ samyag dharmārthadarśivān ||
vijñāyedaṃ tathā kuryād āpadaṃ nistared yathā ||
alohaṃ niśitaṃ śastraṃ śarīraparikartanam ||
yo vetti na tam āghnanti pratighātavidaṃ dviṣaḥ ||
kakṣaghnaḥ śiśiraghnaś ca mahākakṣe bilaukasaḥ ||
na dahed iti cātmānaṃ yo rakṣati sa jīvati ||
nācakṣur vetti panthānaṃ nācakṣur vindate diśaḥ ||
nādhṛtir bhūtim āpnoti budhyasvaivaṃ prabodhitaḥ ||
anāptair dattam ādatte naraḥ śastram alohajam ||
śvāvic charaṇam āsādya pramucyeta hutāśanāt ||
caran mārgān vijānāti nakṣatrair vindate diśaḥ ||
ātmanā cātmanaḥ pañca pīḍayan nānupīḍyate ||
Vidura said: "When the townsfolk had turned back, Vidura, knower of all dharma, instructing the foremost of the Pandavas — the wise one to the wise, a knower of allusive speech — said this: 'Whoever, understanding this, would act so as to overcome calamity. There is a sharp weapon not of iron, which cuts the body [fire]: one who knows it, the enemies cannot strike down, for he knows how to ward off the blow. The destroyer of dry grass and of cold [fire] in the great thicket does not burn the dwellers of burrows: whoever guards himself, thinking thus, lives. The sightless one does not know the road and does not find the directions; the faint-hearted one does not attain prosperity — understand this. Whoever accepts from ill-wishers a weapon not made of iron [a combustible house], let him, like a porcupine reaching its burrow, escape from the fire. Wandering, a man comes to know the roads, by the stars he finds the directions; and he himself, subduing his own five senses, is oppressed by none.'"
00f216df1c64 · published Jul 12, 2026, 5:03:09 PM UTC
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Here is shown the wondrous wisdom and loyalty of Vidura — a warning given in allusion. It is telling that Vidura, speaking as if to people in general, encodes his message so that only the wise Yudhishthira would understand it, while Duryodhana's spies would not decipher it: he joins devotion to dharma with prudence. Here is the image of a faithful counselor who saves the righteous without exposing himself: good acts even in secrecy, when openness is dangerous. Telling too are the very images used: "a weapon not of iron" is the fire of the resinous house; "the porcupine's burrow" is the underground passage for escape; the "sightless" and the "faint-hearted" perish — a call to vigilance and firmness; "subduing the five senses, one is oppressed by none" — self-mastery as protection. Here also a spiritual meaning is disclosed: vigilance, firmness, and mastery of the senses save one not only from the fire of enemies but from the fire of the passions. Thus the scripture reveals in Vidura the saving wisdom of a devoted soul, whose word will deliver the Pandavas from the trap.