In the Mahabharata, the first intimation of the oncoming change of times — from dwapara yuga to kaliyuga, for instance — and its concomitant reduction in moral values is perceived by Vidura, brother to king Dhritarashtra and the chief advisor to the throne of Hastinapura. This is after Dhritarashtra, egged on by Duryodhana and Shakuni, orders the construction of grand sabha for gambling.
Call it a casino if you will, but the sabha's purpose is more specific than that word can denote: to receive Yudhistira, entice him to a game of dice, and to make him lose everything that he has gained after the rajasuya sacrifice.
This conspiracy, simplistic as it may seem, is based on an insight that Shakuni has about the person that is Yudhistira. Shakuni knows that as far as games of dice go, Yudhistira might have the passion but not the skill and cunning. Shakuni himself, on the other hand, is a master: "... the bow and arrows are my dice. the carpet is my chariot," he says. But it is not Yudhistira's ineptitude that is giving Shakuni all the confidence — it is the general indecision that king of Indraprastha is known for.
When one starts gambling, the big decision is not of continuing, but of stopping. Yudhistira, being indecisive, won't be able to stop — that is Shakuni's hypothesis. He could be wrong, and therefore one could say that the entire Kaurava strategy is in fact a glorified bet — Duryodhana wagering on the accuracy of his uncle's insight into the enemy's psyche. It is a good bet, though, for there is no apparent downside for Hastinapura's prince.
Also, given his blazing envy and colossal self-doubt after having seen all the riches donated to Yudhistira at the rajasuya sacrifice (Duryodhana was made in-charge of receiving tributes in that ceremony, a particularly cruel move by Yudhistira), it would seem that Duryodhana has nothing to lose. In fact, before Shakuni comes up with the gambling suggestion, there are hints about Duryodhana contemplating suicide. "If I cannot equal him (Yudhistira), what is the point of being alive today" is the sentiment that he repeats quite a few times.
After the casino in Hastinapura is made, Dhritarashtra commands Vidura to go to Indraprastha and invite Yudhistira. Though he sees only doom in this, Vidura complies with the king's wishes. With his sympathies towards the Pandavas, though, Vidura not only delivers the official invite but also conveys his apprehensions about gambling itself, how it might lead to quarrels.
Yudhistira is, of course, in no position to decline Dhritarashtra's invite. His pride, he knows, will also ensure that he cannot refuse the dice game if a challenge were thrown to him by Shakuni or someone else. There is a note of rejection in his voice as the Pandava troupe leaves for Hastinapura. He blames Destiny, who "robs us of reason, like a glare falling before the eye". It is unclear if he's talking of the Kauravas, or conveying a premonition about himself.
(The writer is reading the unabridged Mahabharata )