दुर्योधन उवाच
द्यूते पुराणैर् व्यवहारः प्रणीतस्; तत्रात्ययो नास्ति न संप्रहारः ॥
तद् रोचतां शकुनेर् वाक्यम् अद्य; सभां क्षिप्रं त्वम् इहाज्ञापयस्व ॥
स्वर्गद्वारं दीव्यतां नो विशिष्टं; तद्वर्तिनां चापि तथैव युक्तम् ॥
भवेद् एवं ह्य् आत्मना तुल्यम् एव; दुरोदरं पाण्डवैस् त्वं कुरुष्व ॥
duryodhana uvāca
dyūte purāṇair vyavahāraḥ praṇītas; tatrātyayo nāsti na saṃprahāraḥ ||
tad rocatāṃ śakuner vākyam adya; sabhāṃ kṣipraṃ tvam ihājñāpayasva ||
svargadvāraṃ dīvyatāṃ no viśiṣṭaṃ; tadvartināṃ cāpi tathaiva yuktam ||
bhaved evaṃ hy ātmanā tulyam eva; durodaraṃ pāṇḍavais tvaṃ kuruṣva ||
"Custom in gambling was established by the ancient [sages] — in it there is neither death nor hand-to-hand combat; so let Shakuni's word please you now; command a hall to be built here quickly. The gates of heaven for gamblers are excellent, and the same holds for those engaged in it; so let it be — arrange a game with the Pandavas, equal for all, as for yourself."
488be0345ae1 · published Jul 16, 2026, 4:03:36 PM UTC
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Dhritarashtra, having barely glimpsed the calamity, immediately dresses it up: the game, he says, is harmless, an ancient custom, even "the gates of heaven." It is telling how a weak will composes its own excuses: to yield to what it desires, it clothes vice in fine appearance. The verse teaches how treacherous self-justification is: what a moment ago was called "the tying of a quarrel" is now called "the gates of heaven." To call the game a road to heaven is a blasphemous substitution, for it is dharma, not passion, that leads to heaven. And "equal, as for oneself" is a hypocritical proviso of fairness where deception is already planned. Whoever, knowing evil, seeks a decent name for it is not deceiving himself but merely preparing an excuse for the conscience he has decided not to heed.