उद्योगिनं पुरुषसिंहमुपैति लक्ष्मी-
र्दैवेन देयमिति कापुरुषा वदन्ति ।
दैवं निहत्य कुरु पौरुषमात्मशक्त्या
यत्ने कृते यदि न सिध्यति कोऽत्र दोषः ॥
udyoginaṁ puruṣa-siṁham upaiti lakṣmīr
daivena deyam iti kāpuruṣā vadanti |
daivaṁ nihatya kuru pauruṣamātma-śaktyā
yatne kṛte yadi na sidhyati ko’tra doṣaḥ ||
(Hitopadeśa: 1.33)
“An endeavoring, lion-like person attains good fortune (lakṣmī). Wretches say, ‘Fortune must be given by destiny.’ Set aside destiny and exert yourself with your full energy. If you make an effort but are not successful, what fault is there in that?”
Commentary
Success comes from hard work. Relying only upon destiny (fatalism) is futile and foolish. Try your best without worrying about destiny or seeking an easy way around hard work. Even if you are not successful, there is no loss in the sense that you wouldn’t have attained your objective anyway had you simply relied only upon destiny.