Chapter 36
“Vidura said, ‘In this connection is cited the old story of the discoursebetween the son of Atri and the deities called Sadhyas is as heard by us.In days of old, the deities known by the name of Sadhyas questioned thehighly wise and great Rishi of rigid vows (the son of Atri), while thelatter was wandering in the guise of one depending on eleemosynarycharity for livelihood. The Sadhyas said, ‘We are, O great Rishi, deitiesknown as Sadhyas. Beholding thee, we are unable to guess who thou art. Itseemeth to us, however, that thou art possessed of intelligence andself-control in consequence of acquaintance with the scriptures. It,therefore, behoveth thee to discourse to us in magnanimous words fraughtwith learning.’ The mendicant Rishi answered, ‘Ye immortals, it hath beenheard by me that by untying all the knots in the heart by the aid oftranquillity, and by mastery over all the passions, and observance oftrue religion, one should regard both the agreeable and the disagreeablelike his own self. One should not return the slanders or reproaches ofothers for the pain that is felt by him who beareth silently, consumeththe slanderer; and he that beareth, succeedeth also in appropriating thevirtues of the slanderer. Indulge not in slanders and reproaches. Do nothumiliate and insult others. Quarrel not with friends. Abstain fromcompanionship with those that are vile and low. Be not arrogant andignoble in conduct. Avoid words that are harsh and fraught with anger.Harsh words burn and scorch the very vitals, bones, heart, and the verysources of the life of men. Therefore, he, that is virtuous, shouldalways abstain from harsh and angry words. That worst of men is of harshand wrathful speech, who pierceth the vitals of others with wordy thorns,beareth hell in his tongue, and should ever be regarded as a dispenser ofmisery to men. The man that is wise, pierced by another’s wordy arrows,sharp-pointed and smarting like fire or the sun, should, even if deeplywounded and burning with pain, bear them patiently remembering that theslanderer’s merits become his. He that waiteth upon one that is good orupon one that is wicked, upon one that is possessed of ascetic merit orupon one that is a thief, soon taketh the colour from that companion ofhis, like a cloth from the dye in which it is soaked. The very godsdesire his company, who, stung with reproach, returneth if not himselfnor causeth others to return it, or who being struck doth not himselfreturn the blow nor causeth other to do it, and who wisheth not theslightest injury to him that injureth him. Silence, it is said, is betterthan speech, if speak you must, then it is better to say the truth; iftruth is to be said, it is better to say what is agreeable; and if whatis agreeable is to be said, then it is better to say what is consistentwith morality. A man becometh exactly like him with whom he liveth, orlike him whom he regardeth, or like that which he wisheth to be. One isfreed from those things from which one abstaineth, and if one abstainethfrom everything he hath not to suffer even the least misery. Such a manneither vanquisheth others, nor is vanquished by others. He neverinjureth nor opposeth others. He is unmoved by praise or blame. Heneither grieveth nor exalteth in joy. That man is regarded as the firstof his species who wisheth for the prosperity of all and never settethhis heart on the misery of others, who is truthful in speech, humble inbehaviour, and hath all his passions under control. That man is regardedas a mediocre in goodness who never consoleth others by saying what isnot true; who giveth having promise; and who keepeth an eye over theweakness of others. These, however, are the indications of a bad man,viz., incapacity to be controlled; liability to be afflicted by dangers;proneness to give way to wrath, ungratefulness; inability to becomeanother’s friend, and wickedness of heart. He too is the worst of men,who is dissatisfied with any good that may come to him from others who issuspicious of his own self, and who driveth away from himself all histrue friends. He that desireth prosperity to himself, should wait uponthem that are good, and at times upon them that are indifferent, butnever upon them that are bad. He that is wicked, earneth wealth, it istrue, by putting forth his strength, by constant effort, by intelligence,and by prowess, but he can never win honest fame, nor can he acquire thevirtues and manners of high families (in any of which he may be born).’
“Dhritarashtra said, ‘The gods, they that regard both virtue and profitwithout swerving from either, and they that are possessed of greatlearning, express a liking for high families. I ask thee, O Vidura, thisquestion,–what are those families that are called high?’
“Vidura said, ‘Asceticism, self-restraint, knowledge of the Vedas,sacrifices, pure marriages, and gifts of food,–those families in whichthese seven exist or are practised duly, are regarded as high. There arehigh families who deviate not from the right course whose deceasedancestors are never pained (by witnessing the wrong-doings of theirdescendants), who cheerfully practise all the virtues, who desire toenhance the pure fame of the line in which they are born, and who avoidevery kind of falsehood. Families that are high, fall down and become lowowing to the absence of sacrifices, impure marriages, abandonment of theVedas, and insults offered to Brahmanas. High families fall off andbecome low owing to their members disregarding or speaking ill ofBrahmanas, or to the misappropriation, O Bharata, of what had beendeposited with them by others. Those families that are possessed ofmembers, wealth and kine, are not regarded as families if they be wantingin good manners and conduct, while families wanting in wealth butdistinguished by manners and good conduct are regarded as such and wingreat reputation. Therefore, should good manners and good conduct bemaintained with care, for, as regards wealth, it cometh or goeth. He thatis wanting in wealth is not really wanting, but he that is wanting inmanners and conduct is really in want. Those families that abound in kineand other cattle and in the produce of the field are not really worthy ofregard and fame if they be wanting in manners and conduct. Let none inour race be a fomenter of quarrels, none serve a king as minister, nonesteal the wealth of others, none provoke intestine dissensions, none bedeceitful or false in behaviour, and none eat before serving the Rishis,the gods, and guests. He, in our race, who slayeth Brahmanas, orentertaineth feelings of aversion towards them, or impedeth or otherwiseinjureth agriculture, doth not deserve to mix with us. Straw (for aseat), ground (for sitting upon), water (to wash the feet and face), and,fourthly sweet words,–these are never wanting in the houses of the good.Virtuous men devoted to the practice of righteous acts, when desirous ofentertaining (guests), have these things ready for being offered withreverence. As the Sandal tree, O king, though thin, is competent to bearweights which timbers of other trees (much thicker) cannot; so they thatbelong to high families are always able to bear the weight of great careswhich ordinary men cannot. He is no friend whose anger inspireth fear, orwho is to be waited upon with fear. He, however, on whom one can reposeconfidence as on a father, is a true friend. Other friendships arenominal connection. He that beareth himself as a friend, even thoughunconnected by birth of blood, is a true friend, a real refuge, and aprotector. He, whose heart is unsteady, or who doth not wait upon theaged, or who is of a restless disposition cannot make friends. Success(in the attainment of objects) forsaketh the person whose heart isunsteady, or who hath no control over his mind, or who is a slave of hissenses, like swans forsaking a tank whose waters have dried up. They thatare of weak minds suddenly give way to anger and are gratified withoutsufficient cause; they are like clouds that are so inconstant. The verybirds of prey abstain from touching the dead bodies of those who havingbeen served and benefited by friends, show ingratitude to the latter.Beest thou poor or beest thou rich, thou shouldst honour thy friends.Until some service is asked, the sincerity or otherwise of friends cannotbe known. Sorrow killeth beauty; sorrow killeth strength; sorrow killeththe understanding; and sorrow bringeth on disease. Grief, instead ofhelping the acquisition of his object, drieth up the body, and makethone’s foes glad. Therefore, do not yield to grief, Men repeatedly die andare reborn; repeatedly they wither away and grow; repeatedly they askothers for help, and they themselves are asked for help; repeatedly theylament and are lamented. Happiness and misery, plenty and want, gain andloss, life and death, are shared by all in due order. Therefore, he thatis self-controlled should neither exult in joy nor repine in sorrow. Thesix senses are always restless. Through the most predominant one amongstthem one’s understanding escapeth in proportion to the strength itassumes, like water from a pot through its holes.’
“Dhritarashtra said, ‘King Yudhishthira who is like a flame of fire, hasbeen deceived by me. He will surely exterminate in battle all my wickedsons. Everything, therefore, seems to me to be fraught with danger, andmy mind is full of anxiety, O thou of great intelligence, tell me suchwords as may dispel my anxiety.’
“Vidura said, ‘O sinless one, in nothing else than knowledge andasceticism, in nothing else than restraining the senses, in nothing elsethan complete abandonment of avarice, do I see thy good. Fear isdispelled by self-knowledge; by asceticism one winneth what is great andvaluable; by waiting upon superiors learning is acquired; and peace isgained by self-restraint. They that desire salvation without havingacquired the merit attainable by gifts, or that which is attainable bypractising the ritual of the Vedas, do not sojourn through life, freedfrom anger and aversion. The happiness that may be derived from ajudicious course of study, from a battle fought virtuously, from asceticausterities performed rigidly, always increaseth at the end. They thatare no longer in peace with their relatives, obtain no steep even if theyhave recourse to well-made beds; nor do they, O king, derive any plea.sure from women, or the laudatory hymns of bards and eulogists. Suchpersons can never practise virtue. Happiness can never be theirs, in thisworld. Honours can never be theirs, and peace hath no charm for them.Counsels that are for their benefit please them not. They never acquirewhat they have not, nor succeed in retaining what they have, O king,there is no other end for such men save destruction. As milk is possiblein kine, asceticism in Brahmanas, and inconstancy in women, so fear ispossible from relatives. Numerous thin threads of equal length, collectedtogether, are competent to bear, from the strength of numbers, theconstant rolling of the shuttle-cock over them. The case is even so withrelatives that are good, O bull of the Bharata race, separated from oneanother, burning brands produce only smoke; but brought together theyblaze forth into a powerful flame. The case is even so, O Dhritarashtra,with relatives. They, O Dhritarashtra, who tyrannise over Brahmanas,women, relatives, and kine, soon fall off their stalks, like fruits thatare ripe. And the tree that stands singly, though gigantic and strong anddeep-rooted, hath its trunk soon smashed and twisted by a mighty wind.Those trees, however, that grow in close compact are competent owing tomutual dependence to resist winds more violent still. Thus he that issingle, however, endowed with all the virtues, is regarded by foes ascapable of being vanquished like an isolated tree by the wind. Relatives,again, in consequence of mutual dependence and mutual aid, grow together,like lotus-stalks in a lake. These must never be slain, viz., Brahmanas,kine, relatives, children, women, those whose food is eaten, and thosealso that yield by asking for protection. O king, without wealth no goodquality can show itself in a person. If, however, thou art in health,thou canst achieve thy good, for he is dead who is unhealthy and ill. Oking, anger is a kind of bitter, pungent, acrid, and hot drink, painfulin its consequences: it is a kind of headache not born of any physicalillness, and they that are unwise can never digest it. Do thou, O king,swallow it up and obtain peace. They that are tortured by disease have noliking for enjoyments, nor do they desire any happiness from wealth. Thesick, however, filled with sorrow, know not what happiness is or what theenjoyments of wealth are. Beholding Draupadi won at dice, I told theebefore, O king, these words,–They that are honest avoid deceit in play.Therefore, stop Duryodhana! Thou didst not, however, act according to mywords. That is not strength which is opposed to softness. On the otherhand, strength mixed with softness constitutes true policy which shouldever be pursued. That prosperity which is dependent on crookedness aloneis destined to be destroyed. That prosperity, however, which depends onboth strength and softness, descends to sons and grandsons in tact. Let,therefore, thy sons cherish the Pandavas, and the Pandavas also cherishthy sons. O king, let the Kurus and the Pandavas, both having samefriends and same foes, live together in happiness and prosperity. Thouart, today, O king, the refuge of the sons of Kuru. Indeed, the race ofKuru, O Ajamida, is dependent on thee. O sire, preserving thy fameunsullied, cherish thou the children of Pandu, afflicted as they are withthe sufferings of exile. O descendant of Kuru, make peace with the sonsof Pandu. Let not thy foes discover thy holes. They all, O god among men,are devoted to truth. O king of men, withdraw Duryodhana from his evilways.'”
