धृतराष्ट्र उवाच
नेह क्षत्तः कलहस् तप्स्यते मां; न चेद् दैवं प्रतिलोमं भविष्यत् ॥
धात्रा तु दिष्टस्य वशे किलेदं; सर्वं जगच् चेष्टति न स्वतन्त्रम् ॥
तद् अद्य विदुर प्राप्य राजानं मम शासनात् ॥
क्षिप्रम् आनय दुर्धर्षं कुन्तीपुत्रं युधिष्ठिरम् ॥
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca
neha kṣattaḥ kalahas tapsyate māṃ; na ced daivaṃ pratilomaṃ bhaviṣyat ||
dhātrā tu diṣṭasya vaśe kiledaṃ; sarvaṃ jagac ceṣṭati na svatantram ||
tad adya vidura prāpya rājānaṃ mama śāsanāt ||
kṣipram ānaya durdharṣaṃ kuntīputraṃ yudhiṣṭhiram ||
[Dhritarashtra:] "Strife will not grieve me here, O Kshattri, if fate is not adverse; for this whole world moves by the will of what the Creator has ordained, not self-ruled. Therefore now, Vidura, go to the king by my command, and quickly bring the unconquerable son of Kunti, Yudhishthira."
09634db2b3dd · published Jul 16, 2026, 4:03:36 PM UTC
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The king again takes shelter behind fate: "everything lies in the Creator's will, the world is not self-ruled." It is telling how the truth about providence is twisted into a way of shedding one's own responsibility: it is true that the world moves by a will higher than itself -- but this does not abolish the agent's freedom or guilt. The verse teaches how to distinguish true surrender from cunning fatalism: the humble soul accepts what is sent and does what is right, while the weak-willed invokes destiny in order to do wrong with impunity. Dhritarashtra speaks of the Creator not in submission to Him, but to justify his own willfulness. And the command that crowns this speech -- "bring Yudhishthira" -- is the deed of his own will, not of fate; destiny did not compel the summons to the game -- he himself called for it, hiding behind destiny.