Vidur Niti’s Teachings to Make Life Simpler

To mean skilled, intelligent, and wise is to be 'Vidur'. Lord Vidur from the famous Hindu Epic Mahabharata possessed these exact qualities. He is portrayed as the half-brother of King Dhritarashtra and the Minister of the mythical kingdom of Hastinapur.

He is celebrated as a great scholar, who was a paragon of truthfulness, dutifulness, unbiased judgment, and unfaltering faith to Dharma. Taking place prior to the War of Kurukshetra, he is known for his Nitis, written down in the form of conversations with his brother Dhritarashtra. Vidur Niti is primarily used in politics, however, it can be widely used even in our daily lives. Here are some tips from Vidur Niti which might help you make your life easier.

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Characteristics of Wise Person

आत्मज्ञानं समारम्भः तितिक्षा धर्मनित्यता । यमर्थान्नापकर्षन्ति स वै पण्डित उच्यते ॥

Aatmajnaanam samaarambha stitikshaa dharmanityataa

Yamarthaannaapakarshanti sa vai pandita uchyate

The quote by Vidhur means to describe the attribute of a wise person. When translated, the phrase states, a wise person does not diverge from higher goals of life because his actions are based on qualities like self-knowledge, endeavor, patience, and devotion to dharma.

An Aware Person Is Unbiased In Action

यस्य कृत्यं न विघ्नन्ति शीतमुष्णं भयं रतिः । समृद्धिरसमृद्धिर्वा स वै पण्डित उच्यते ॥

Yasya krityam na vighnanti sheetamushnam bhayam ratih

Samriddhirasamriddhir vaa sa vai pandita uchyate

In order to be wiser one needs to be unbiased. They must lose any emotional attachments; it is an important step for succeeding in work and life itself. The quote above by Vidur reads, "A wise person's actions and undertakings are not affected by cold, heat, love, fear, and affluence or poverty.

Focus on our Goal

नाप्राप्यमभिवाञ्छन्ति नष्टं नेच्छन्ति शोचितुम् । आपत्सु च न मुह्यन्ति स वै पण्डित उच्यते ॥

Naapraapyamabhivaanjhanti nashtam nechchhanti shochitum

Aapatsu ch na muhyanti sa vai pandita uchyate

It is foolish for a person to long for things that are unachievable, as it is wasting its effort, energy, and time. Therefore, a person who worries and loses his senses in difficulty will fail to achieve his goals because he will lose his vision. The quote by Vidur describes it brilliantly; the quote goes, "A wise man doesn't waste his effort and time after unattainable goals, does not worry about things he lost and does not lose his sense in difficult times".

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Commitment to Task in Hand and Time management

निश्चित्वा यः प्रक्रमते नान्तर्वसति कर्मणः ।

अवन्ध्यकालो वश्यात्मा स वै पण्डित उच्यते ॥

Nishchitwaa yah prakramate naantarvasati karmanah

Avandhyakaalo vashyaatmaa sa vai pandita uchyate

This Vidur Neeti quote states, "A Wise person is committed to his Endeavor Beforehand, he does not take long breaks before completion of the task, does not waste time, and has a control on his mind. We all tend to keep doing mistakes of running after temporary goals and end up abandoning it. In order to succeed, we need to take preemptive action of being committed task ahead of us. This will help us be focused on our end goal. Likewise, if we waste time and take long breaks during work, we may forget our short-term goals and halt the work itself. Thus, we shouldn't take long breaks and waste time. In order to develop the aforementioned qualities, we need to have control over the mind. The control over the mind is key because we tend to get attracted to ease and leisure.

Be Good to Friends and Be Safe from Enemies

अमित्रं कुरुते मित्रं मित्रं द्वेष्टि हिनस्ति च कर्मचारभते दुष्टं तमाहुर्मूढचेतसं ॥।

Amitram kurute mitram mitram dweshti hinasti cha

Karma chaarabhate dushtam tamaahurmooddha chetasam

The above quote by Vidur acts as advice, it reads, Only fools make enemies of his friends, hurt them and kill them, and involve himself in a misdeed. Like ants, we humans are social beings, we need help from people on our way to success. Thus, we should be friendly to people and be good for everyone. We should also learn to be far from enemies as they carry tendencies to hurt us.

Importance of Thinking in A Group

एकश्चार्थान् न चिन्तयेत्

Ekashchaarthaan na chintayet

The quote by Vidur emphasizes group thinking, "One should not think on the substance of matter alone". We are often found to be biased towards our ideas and tend to think they are good, missing out on the flaws they carry. Thus, Vidur Neeti suggests us to take crucial steps with the help of a group.

Keeping Emotion Under Control

न हृष्यत्यात्मसम्माने नावमानेन तप्यते

गांगो ह्रद इवाक्षोभ्यो यः स पण्डित उच्यते

Na hrishyatyaatmasammaane naavamaanena tapyate

Gaango hrada ivaakshobhyo yah sah pandita uchyate

A person who gets overexcited in joy will suffer from harm; heightened emotion of happiness often shrouds the senses and undermines the ability to think properly. Similarly, an extreme level of unhappiness also affects the unbiased way of soaking in things. One needs to develop the ability to do work and living life in such a manner, where he is not affected by emotions. This will prevent him from thinking in just and the right way. The phrases also try to teach us the same. It states, "A wise one is not too happy when honored, he does not feel sad when dishonored and he is not affected by emotion even in difficult times".