शकुनिर् उवाच
उपस्तीर्णा सभा राजन् रन्तुं चैते कृतक्षणाः ॥
अक्षान् उप्त्वा देवनस्य समयो ऽस्तु युधिष्ठिर ॥
युधिष्ठिर उवाच
निकृतिर् देवनं पापं न क्षात्रो ऽत्र पराक्रमः ॥
न च नीतिर् ध्रुवा राजन् किं त्वं द्यूतं प्रशंससि ॥
न हि मानं प्रशंसन्ति निकृतौ कितवस्य ह ॥
शकुने मैव नो जैषीर् अमार्गेण नृशंसवत् ॥
śakunir uvāca
upastīrṇā sabhā rājan rantuṃ caite kṛtakṣaṇāḥ ||
akṣān uptvā devanasya samayo 'stu yudhiṣṭhira ||
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca
nikṛtir devanaṃ pāpaṃ na kṣātro 'tra parākramaḥ ||
na ca nītir dhruvā rājan kiṃ tvaṃ dyūtaṃ praśaṃsasi ||
na hi mānaṃ praśaṃsanti nikṛtau kitavasya ha ||
śakune maiva no jaiṣīr amārgeṇa nṛśaṃsavat ||
[Shakuni:] "The hall is spread, O king, and these [players] are ready to play; let the dice be cast and an agreement about the game be made, Yudhishthira." [Yudhishthira:] "A game won by deceit is sinful; there is no kshatriya valor in it, nor any firm policy, O king; why do you praise the game? For honor [gained] through a gambler's deceit is not praised; do not defeat us, Shakuni, by an unjust and cruel-hearted path."
fb148fcebaa4 · प्रकाशित 16 जुल॰ 2026, 4:03:36 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
Even before the dice are cast, Yudhishthira calls the thing by its true name: "a game won by deceit is sinful." It is telling that the righteous man enters into the affair while already foreseeing its wrongness, and openly bears witness against it. The verse teaches that there are victories one is ashamed of: winning by deceit brings no honor, whatever the outcome. And the plea "do not defeat us by an unjust path" is addressed to the conscience of the opponent — the righteous man appeals to the good in another to the very end, even in one bent on wrongdoing. But an appeal to the honor of one who has none is in vain: Shakuni will feel no shame. Thus truth shows its powerlessness before one resolved on deceit — it can expose, but it cannot stop.