Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: Canto 3: “The Status Quo”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter One
Questions by Vidura
SB3.1.1
TEXT 1
śrī-śuka uvāca
evam etat purā pṛṣṭo
maitreyo bhagavān kila
kṣattrā vanaṁ praviṣṭena
tyaktvā sva-gṛham ṛddhimat
SYNONYMS
śrī-śukaḥ uvāca—Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said; evam—thus; etat—this; purā—formerly; pṛṣṭaḥ—being asked; maitreyaḥ—the great sage Maitreya; bhagavān—His Grace; kila—certainly; kṣattrā—by Vidura; vanam—forest; praviṣṭena—entering; tyaktvā—renouncing; sva-gṛham—own house; ṛddhimat—prosperous.
TRANSLATION
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: After renouncing his prosperous home and entering the forest, King Vidura, the great devotee, asked this question of His Grace Maitreya Ṛṣi.
SB3.1.2
TEXT 2
yad vā ayaṁ mantra-kṛd vo
bhagavān akhileśvaraḥ
pauravendra-gṛhaṁ hitvā
praviveśātmasāt kṛtam
SYNONYMS
yat—the house; vai—what else is there to say; ayam—Śrī Kṛṣṇa; mantra-kṛt—minister; vaḥ—you people; bhagavān—the Personality of Godhead; akhila-īśvaraḥ—the Lord of everything; pauravendra—Duryodhana; gṛham—house; hitvā—giving up; praviveśa—entered; ātmasāt—identify with oneself; kṛtam—so accepted.
TRANSLATION
What else is there to say about the residential house of the Pāṇḍavas? Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Lord of everything, acted as your minister. He used to enter that house as if it were His own, and He did not take any care of Duryodhana’s house.
PURPORT
According to the Gauḍīya acintya-bhedābheda-tattva philosophy, anything which satisfies the senses of the Supreme Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is also Śrī Kṛṣṇa. For example, Śrī Vṛndāvana-dhāma is nondifferent from Śrī Kṛṣṇa (tad-dhāma vṛndāvanam) because at Vṛndāvana the Lord enjoys the transcendental bliss of His internal potency. Similarly, the house of the Pāṇḍavas was also the source of transcendental bliss for the Lord. It is mentioned here that the Lord identified the house with His own Self. Thus the house of the Pāṇḍavas was as good as Vṛndāvana, and Vidura should not have given up that place of transcendental bliss. Therefore the reason for his quitting the house was not exactly family misunderstanding; rather, Vidura took the opportunity to meet Ṛṣi Maitreya and discuss transcendental knowledge. For a saintly person like Vidura, any disturbance due to worldly affairs is insignificant. Such disturbances, however, are sometimes favorable for higher realization, and therefore Vidura took advantage of a family misunderstanding in order to meet Maitreya Ṛṣi.
SB3.1.3 TEXT 3 rājovāca kutra kṣattur bhagavatā maitreyeṇāsa saṅgamaḥ kadā vā saha-saṁvāda etad varṇaya naḥ prabho SYNONYMS rājā uvāca—the King said; kutra—wherein; kṣattuḥ—with Vidura; bhagavatā—and with His Grace; maitreyeṇa—with Maitreya; āsa—there was; saṅgamaḥ—meeting; kadā—when; vā—also; saha—with; saṁvādaḥ—discussion; etat—this; varṇaya—describe; naḥ—unto me; prabho—O my lord.
TRANSLATION The King asked Śukadeva Gosvāmī: Where and when did the meeting and discussion take place between Saint Vidura and His Grace Maitreya Muni? Kindly oblige, my lord, and describe this to us. PURPORT Exactly as Śaunaka Ṛṣi inquired of Sūta Gosvāmī and Sūta Gosvāmī replied, so Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī replied to King Parīkṣit’s inquiries. The King was very anxious to understand the meaningful discussion that took place between the two great souls.
SB3.1.4 TEXT 4 na hy alpārthodayas tasya vidurasyāmalātmanaḥ tasmin varīyasi praśnaḥ sādhu-vādopabṛṁhitaḥ SYNONYMS na—never; hi—certainly; alpa-artha—small (unimportant) purpose; udayaḥ—raised; tasya—his; vidurasya—of Vidura; amala-ātmanaḥ—of the saintly man; tasmin—in that; varīyasi—highly purposeful; praśnaḥ—question; sādhu-vāda—things approved by saints and sages; upabṛṁhitaḥ—full with.
TRANSLATION Saint Vidura was a great and pure devotee of the Lord, and therefore his questions to His Grace Ṛṣi Maitreya must have been very purposeful, on the highest level, and approved by learned circles. PURPORT Questions and answers among different classes of men have different value. Inquiries by mercantile men in a business exchange cannot be expected to be highly purposeful in spiritual values. Questions and answers by different classes of men can be guessed by the caliber of the persons concerned. In Bhagavad-gītā, the discussion was between Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna, the Supreme Person and the supreme devotee respectively. The Lord admitted Arjuna to be His devotee and friend (Bg. 4.3), and therefore any sane man can guess that the discussion was on the topic of the bhakti-yoga system. Actually the whole Bhagavad-gītā is based on the principle of bhakti-yoga. There is a difference between karma and karma-yoga. Karma is regulated action for the enjoyment of the fruit by the performer, but karma-yoga is action performed by the devotee for the satisfaction of the Lord. Karma-yoga is based on bhakti, or pleasing the Lord, whereas karma is based on pleasing the senses of the performer himself. According to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, one is advised to approach a bona fide spiritual master when one is actually inclined to question from an elevated level of spiritual understanding. A common man who has no interest in spiritual values has no need to approach a spiritual master just as a matter of following fashion.
As a student, Mahārāja Parīkṣit was serious about learning the science of God, and Śukadeva Gosvāmī was a bona fide spiritual master in the transcendental science. Both of them knew that the topics discussed by Vidura and Ṛṣi Maitreya were elevated, and thus Mahārāja Parīkṣit was very interested in learning from the bona fide spiritual master.
SB3.1.5 TEXT 5 sūta uvāca sa evam ṛṣi-varyo ’yaṁ pṛṣṭo rājñā parīkṣitā praty āha taṁ subahu-vit prītātmā śrūyatām iti SYNONYMS sūtaḥ uvāca—Śrī Sūta Gosvāmī said; saḥ—he; evam—thus; ṛṣi-varyaḥ—the great ṛṣi; ayam—Śukadeva Gosvāmī; pṛṣṭaḥ—being questioned; rājñā—by the King; parīkṣitā—Mahārāja Parīkṣit; prati—to; āha—replied; tam—unto the King; su-bahu-vit—highly experienced; prīta-ātmā—fully satisfied; śrūyatām—please hear me; iti—thus.
TRANSLATION Śrī Suta Gosvāmī said: The great sage Śukadeva Gosvāmī was highly experienced and was pleased with the King. Thus being questioned by the King, he said to him, “Please hear the topics attentively.” SB3.1.6 TEXT 6 śrī-śuka uvāca yadā tu rājā sva-sutān asādhūn puṣṇan na dharmeṇa vinaṣṭa-dṛṣṭiḥ bhrātur yaviṣṭhasya sutān vibandhūn praveśya lākṣā-bhavane dadāha SYNONYMS śrī-śukaḥ uvāca—Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said; yadā—when; tu—but; rājā—King Dhṛtarāṣṭra; sva-sutān—his own sons; asādhūn—dishonest; puṣṇan—nourishing; na—never; dharmeṇa—on the right path; vinaṣṭa-dṛṣṭiḥ—one who has lost his insight; bhrātuḥ—of his brother; yaviṣṭhasya—younger; sutān—sons; vibandhūn—having no guardian (father); praveśya—made to enter; lākṣā—lacquer; bhavane—in the house; dadāha—set on fire.
TRANSLATION Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: King Dhṛtarāṣṭra became blind under the influence of impious desires to nourish his dishonest sons, and thus he set fire to the lacquer house to burn his fatherless nephews, the Pāṇḍavas. PURPORT Dhṛtarāṣṭra was blind from birth, but his blindness in committing impious activities to support his dishonest sons was a greater blindness than his physical lack of eyesight. The physical lack of sight does not bar one from spiritual progress. But when one is blind spiritually, even though physically fit, that blindness is dangerously detrimental to the progressive path of human life.
SB3.1.7 TEXT 7 yadā sabhāyāṁ kuru-deva-devyāḥ keśābhimarśaṁ suta-karma garhyam na vārayām āsa nṛpaḥ snuṣāyāḥ svāsrair harantyāḥ kuca-kuṅkumāni SYNONYMS yadā—when; sabhāyām—the assembly; kuru-deva-devyāḥ—of Draupadī, the wife of godly Yudhiṣṭhira; keśa-abhimarśam—insult by grabbing her hair; suta-karma—action taken by his son; garhyam—which was abominable; na—did not; vārayām āsa—forbid; nṛpaḥ—the King; snuṣāyāḥ—of his daughter-in-law; svāsraiḥ—by her tears; harantyāḥ—of she who was washing; kuca-kuṅkumāni—red dust on her breast.
TRANSLATION The King did not forbid his son Duḥśāsana’s abominable action of grabbing the hair of Draupadī, the wife of the godly King Yudhiṣṭhira, even though her tears washed the red dust on her breast. SB3.1.8 TEXT 8 dyūte tv adharmeṇa jitasya sādhoḥ satyāvalambasya vanaṁ gatasya na yācato ’dāt samayena dāyaṁ tamo-juṣāṇo yad ajāta-śatroḥ SYNONYMS dyūte—by means of gambling; tu—but; adharmeṇa—by unfair tricks; jitasya—of the vanquished; sādhoḥ—a saintly person; satya-avalambasya—one who embraced truth as shelter; vanam—forest; gatasya—of the goer; na—never; yācataḥ—when asked for; adāt—delivered; samayena—in due course; dāyam—right share; tamaḥ-juṣāṇaḥ—overwhelmed by illusion; yat—as much as; ajāta-śatroḥ—of one who had no enemy.
TRANSLATION Yudhiṣṭhira, who was born without any enemy, was unfairly defeated in gambling. But because he had taken the vow of truthfulness, he went off to the forest. When he came back in due course and begged the return of his rightful share of the kingdom, he was refused by Dhṛtarāṣṭra, who was overwhelmed by illusion. PURPORT Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was the rightful heir to his father’s kingdom. But just to favor his own sons, headed by Duryodhana, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira’s uncle, adopted various unfair means to cheat his nephews of their rightful share of the kingdom. At last the Pāṇḍavas demanded only five villages, one for each of the five brothers, but that was also refused by the usurpers. This incident led to the War of Kurukṣetra. The Battle of Kurukṣetra, therefore, was induced by the Kurus, and not the Pāṇḍavas.
As kṣatriyas, the proper livelihood of the Pāṇḍavas was only to rule, and not to accept any other occupation. A brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya or vaiśya will not accept employment for his livelihood under any circumstances.
SB3.1.9 TEXT 9 yadā ca pārtha-prahitaḥ sabhāyāṁ jagad-gurur yāni jagāda kṛṣṇaḥ na tāni puṁsām amṛtāyanāni rājoru mene kṣata-puṇya-leśaḥ SYNONYMS yadā—when; ca—also; pārtha-prahitaḥ—being advised by Arjuna; sabhāyām—in the assembly; jagat-guruḥ—of the teacher of the world; yāni—those; jagāda—went; kṛṣṇaḥ—Lord Kṛṣṇa; na—never; tāni—such words; puṁsām—of all men of sense; amṛta-ayanāni—as good as nectar; rājā—the King (Dhṛtarāṣṭra or Duryodhana); uru—very important; mene—did consider; kṣata—dwindling; puṇya-leśaḥ—fragment of pious acts.
TRANSLATION Lord Kṛṣṇa was sent by Arjuna into the assembly as the spiritual master of the whole world, and although His words were heard by some [like Bhīṣma] as pure nectar, it was not so for the others, who were completely bereft of the last farthing of past pious works. The King [Dhṛtarāṣṭra or Duryodhana] did not take the words of Lord Kṛṣṇa very seriously. PURPORT Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is the spiritual master of the entire universe, accepted the duty of a messenger, and, deputed by Arjuna, went to the assembly of King Dhṛtarāṣṭra on a peace mission. Kṛṣṇa is everyone’s Lord, yet because He was the transcendental friend of Arjuna, He gladly accepted the role of messenger, exactly like an ordinary friend. That is the beauty of the Lord’s behavior with His pure devotees. He reached the assembly and spoke about peace, and the message was relished by Bhīṣma and other great leaders because it was spoken by the Lord Himself. But due to the exhaustion of the pious results of their past deeds, Duryodhana, or his father, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, did not take the message very seriously. That is the way of persons who have no credit of pious deeds. By past pious deeds, one may become the king of a country, but because the results of the pious acts of Duryodhana and company were dwindling, it became evident from their actions that they were sure to lose the kingdom to the Pāṇḍavas. The message of Godhead is always like nectar to the devotees, but it is just the opposite to the nondevotees. Sugar candy is always sweet to a healthy man, but it tastes very bitter to persons suffering from jaundice.
SB3.1.10 TEXT 10 yadopahūto bhavanaṁ praviṣṭo mantrāya pṛṣṭaḥ kila pūrvajena athāha tan mantra-dṛśāṁ varīyān yan mantriṇo vaidurikaṁ vadanti SYNONYMS yadā—when; upahūtaḥ—was called by; bhavanam—the palace; praviṣṭaḥ—entered; mantrāya—for consultation; pṛṣṭaḥ—asked by; kila—of course; pūrvajena—by the elder brother; atha—thus; āha—said; tat—that; mantra—advice; dṛśām—just suitable; varīyān—excellent; yat—that which; mantriṇaḥ—the ministers of state, or expert politicians; vaidurikam—instructions by Vidura; vadanti—do they say.
TRANSLATION When Vidura was invited by his elder brother [Dhṛtarāṣṭra] for consultation, he entered the house and gave instructions which were exactly to the point. His advice is well known, and instructions by Vidura are approved by expert ministers of state. PURPORT Political suggestions by Vidura are known as expert, just as, in modern times, Paṇḍita Cāṇakya is considered the authority in good counsel in both political and moral instructions.
SB3.1.11 TEXT 11 ajāta-śatroḥ pratiyaccha dāyaṁ titikṣato durviṣahaṁ tavāgaḥ sahānujo yatra vṛkodarāhiḥ śvasan ruṣā yat tvam alaṁ bibheṣi SYNONYMS ajāta-śatroḥ—of Yudhiṣṭhira, who has no enemy; pratiyaccha—return; dāyam—legitimate share; titikṣataḥ—of he who is so forbearing; durviṣaham—unbearable; tava—your; āgaḥ—offense; saha—along with; anujaḥ—younger brothers; yatra—wherein; vṛkodara—Bhīma; ahiḥ—revenging snake; śvasan—breathing heavily; ruṣā—in anger; yat—whom; tvam—you; alam—verily; bibheṣi—do fear.
TRANSLATION [Vidura said:] You must now return the legitimate share to Yudhiṣṭhira, who has no enemies and who has been forbearing through untold sufferings due to your offenses. He is waiting with his younger brothers, among whom is the revengeful Bhīma, breathing heavily like a snake. Surely you are afraid of him. SB3.1.12 TEXT 12 pārthāṁs tu devo bhagavān mukundo gṛhītavān sakṣiti-deva-devaḥ āste sva-puryāṁ yadu-deva-devo vinirjitāśeṣa-nṛdeva-devaḥ SYNONYMS pārthān—the sons of Pṛthā (Kuntī); tu—but; devaḥ—the Lord; bhagavān—the Personality of Godhead; mukundaḥ—Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who awards liberation; gṛhītavān—has taken up; sa—with; kṣiti-deva-devaḥ—the brāhmaṇas and the demigods; āste—is present; sva-puryām—along with His family; yadu-deva-devaḥ—worshiped by the royal order of the Yadu dynasty; vinirjita—who have been conquered; aśeṣa—unlimited; nṛdeva—kings; devaḥ—Lord.
TRANSLATION Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, has accepted the sons of Pṛthā as His kinsmen, and all the kings of the world are with Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. He is present in His home with all His family members, the kings and princes of the Yadu dynasty, who have conquered an unlimited number of rulers, and He is their Lord. PURPORT Vidura gave Dhṛtarāṣṭra very good counsel regarding political alliance with the sons of Pṛthā, the Pāṇḍavas. The first thing he said was that Lord Kṛṣṇa was intimately related with them as their cousin. Because Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He is worshipable by all brāhmaṇas and demigods, who are the controllers of the universal affairs. Besides that, Lord Kṛṣṇa and His family members, the royal order of the Yadu dynasty, were the conquerors of all kings of the world.
The kṣatriyas used to fight the kings of various dominions and kidnap their beautiful princess-daughters, after conquering their relatives. This system was laudable because the kṣatriyas and the princesses would be married only on the basis of the chivalry of the conquering kṣatriya. All the young princes of the Yadu dynasty married the daughters of other kings in this way, by chivalrous force, and thus they were conquerors of all the kings of the world. Vidura wanted to impress upon his elder brother that fighting with the Pāṇḍavas was fraught with many dangers because they were supported by Lord Kṛṣṇa, who had conquered, even in His childhood, demons like Kaṁsa and Jarāsandha and demigods like Brahmā and Indra. Therefore all universal power was behind the Pāṇḍavas.
SB3.1.13 TEXT 13 sa eṣa doṣaḥ puruṣa-dviḍ āste gṛhān praviṣṭo yam apatya-matyā puṣṇāsi kṛṣṇād vimukho gata-śrīs tyajāśv aśaivaṁ kula-kauśalāya SYNONYMS saḥ—he; eṣaḥ—this; doṣaḥ—offense personified; puruṣa-dviṭ—envious of Lord Kṛṣṇa; āste—exists; gṛhān—household; praviṣṭaḥ—entered; yam—whom; apatya-matyā—thinking to be your son; puṣṇāsi—maintaining; kṛṣṇāt—from Kṛṣṇa; vimukhaḥ—in opposition; gata-śrīḥ—devoid of everything auspicious; tyaja—give up; āśu—as soon as possible; aśaivam—inauspicious; kula—family; kauśalāya—for the sake of.
TRANSLATION You are maintaining offense personified, Duryodhana, as your infallible son, but he is envious of Lord Kṛṣṇa. And because you are thus maintaining a nondevotee of Kṛṣṇa, you are devoid of all auspicious qualities. Relieve yourself of this ill fortune as soon as possible and do good to the whole family! PURPORT A good son is called apatya, one who does not allow his father to fall down. The son can protect the father’s soul when the father is dead by offering sacrifices to please the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu. This system is still prevalent in India. After the death of his father, a son goes to offer sacrifices at the lotus feet of Viṣṇu at Gayā and thus delivers the father’s soul if the father is fallen. But if the son is already an enemy of Viṣṇu, how, in such an inimical mood, can he offer sacrifice unto Lord Viṣṇu’s lotus feet? Lord Kṛṣṇa is directly the Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, and Duryodhana was inimical to Him. He would therefore be unable to protect his father, Dhṛtarāṣṭra, after his death. He himself was to fall down because of his faithlessness towards Viṣṇu. How, then, could he protect his father? Vidura advised Dhṛtarāṣṭra to get rid of such an unworthy son as Duryodhana as soon as possible if he was at all anxious to see to the good of his family.
According to the moral instructions of Cāṇakya Paṇḍita, “What is the use of a son who is neither a learned man nor a devotee of the Lord?” If a son is not a devotee of the Supreme Lord, he is just like blind eyes—a source of trouble. A physician may sometimes advise the extrication of such useless eyes from their sockets so that one can be relieved of the constant trouble. Duryodhana was exactly like blind, troubling eyes; he would be a source of great trouble to the family of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, as foreseen by Vidura. Vidura therefore rightly advised his eldest brother to get rid of this source of trouble. Dhṛtarāṣṭra was wrongly maintaining such personified offense under the mistaken impression that Duryodhana was a good son, able to liberate his father.
SB3.1.14 TEXT 14 ity ūcivāṁs tatra suyodhanena pravṛddha-kopa-sphuritādhareṇa asat-kṛtaḥ sat-spṛhaṇīya-śīlaḥ kṣattā sakarṇānuja-saubalena SYNONYMS iti—thus; ūcivān—while speaking; tatra—there; suyodhanena—by Duryodhana; pravṛddha—swollen with; kopa—anger; sphurita—flapping; adhareṇa—lips; asat-kṛtaḥ—insulted; sat—respectable; spṛhaṇīya-śīlaḥ—desirable qualities; kṣattā—Vidura; sa—with; karṇa—Karṇa; anuja—younger brothers; saubalena—with Śakuni.
TRANSLATION While speaking thus, Vidura, whose personal character was esteemed by respectable persons, was insulted by Duryodhana, who was swollen with anger and whose lips were trembling. Duryodhana was in company with Karṇa, his younger brothers and his maternal uncle Śakuni. PURPORT It is said that giving good counsel to a foolish person causes the fool to become angry, just as feeding milk to a snake only increases its venomous poison. Saint Vidura was so honorable that his character was looked up to by all respectable persons. But Duryodhana was so foolish that he dared to insult Vidura. This was due to his bad association with Śakuni, his maternal uncle, as well as with his friend Karṇa, who always encouraged Duryodhana in his nefarious acts.
SB3.1.15 TEXT 15 ka enam atropajuhāva jihmaṁ dāsyāḥ sutaṁ yad-balinaiva puṣṭaḥ tasmin pratīpaḥ parakṛtya āste nirvāsyatām āśu purāc chvasānaḥ SYNONYMS kaḥ—who; enam—this; atra—here; upajuhāva—called for; jihmam—crooked; dāsyāḥ—of a kept mistress; sutam—son; yat—whose; balinā—by whose subsistence; eva—certainly; puṣṭaḥ—grown up; tasmin—unto him; pratīpaḥ—enmity; parakṛtya—enemy’s interest; āste—situated; nirvāsyatām—get him out; āśu—immediately; purāt—from the palace; śvasānaḥ—let him breathe only.
TRANSLATION Who asked him to come here, this son of a kept mistress? He is so crooked that he spies in the interest of the enemy against those on whose support he has grown up. Toss him out of the palace immediately and leave him with only his breath. PURPORT When getting married, the kṣatriya kings would take on several other youthful girls along with the married princess. These girl attendants of the king were known as dāsīs, or attendant mistresses. By intimate association with the king, the dāsīs would get sons. Such sons were called dāsī-putras. They had no claim to a royal position, but they would get maintenance and other facilities just like princes. Vidura was the son of such a dāsī, and he was thus not counted amongst the kṣatriyas. King Dhṛtarāṣṭra was very affectionate toward his younger dāsī-putra brother, Vidura, and Vidura was a great friend and philosophical advisor to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Duryodhana knew very well that Vidura was a great soul and well-wisher, but unfortunately he used strong words to hurt his innocent uncle. Duryodhana not only attacked Vidura’s birth, but also called him an infidel because he seemed to support the cause of Yudhiṣṭhira, whom Duryodhana considered his enemy. He desired that Vidura he immediately put out of the palace and deprived of all his possessions. If possible, he would have liked him caned until he was left with nothing but his breath. He charged that Vidura was a spy of the Pāṇḍavas because he advised King Dhṛtarāṣṭra in their favor. Such is the situation of palace life and the intricacies of diplomacy that even a faultless person like Vidura could be charged with something abominable and punished. Vidura was struck with wonder at such unexpected behavior from his nephew Duryodhana, and before anything actually happened, he decided to leave the palace for good.
SB3.1.16 TEXT 16 svayaṁ dhanur dvāri nidhāya māyāṁ bhrātuḥ puro marmasu tāḍito ’pi sa ittham atyulbaṇa-karṇa-bāṇair gata-vyatho ’yād uru mānayānaḥ SYNONYMS svayam—he himself; dhanuḥ dvāri—bow on the door; nidhāya—keeping; māyām—the external nature; bhrātuḥ—brother’s; puraḥ—from the palace; marmasu—in the core of the heart; tāḍitaḥ—being afflicted; api—in spite of; saḥ—he (Vidura); ittham—like this; ati-ulbaṇa—severely; karṇa—ear; bāṇaiḥ—by the arrows; gata-vyathaḥ—without being sorry; ayāt—excited; uru—great; māna-yānaḥ—so thinking.
TRANSLATION Thus being pierced by arrows through his ears and afflicted to the core of his heart, Vidura placed his bow on the door and quit his brother’s palace. He was not sorry, for he considered the acts of the external energy to be supreme. PURPORT A pure devotee of the Lord is never perturbed by an awkward position created by the external energy of the Lord. In Bhagavad-gītā (3.27) it is stated:
prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni A conditioned soul is absorbed in material existence under the influence of different modes of external energy. Absorbed in the false ego, he thinks that he is doing everything by himself. The external energy of the Lord, the material nature, is fully under the control of the Supreme Lord, and the conditioned soul is fully under the grip of the external energy. Therefore, the conditioned soul is fully under the control of the law of the Lord. But, due to illusion only, he thinks himself independent in his activities. Duryodhana was acting under such influence of the external nature, by which he would be vanquished at the ultimate end. He could not accept the sound advice of Vidura, but on the contrary he insulted that great soul, who was the well-wisher of his whole family. Vidura could understand this because he was a pure devotee of the Lord. In spite of being very strongly insulted by Duryodhana’s words, Vidura could see that Duryodhana, under the influence of māyā, the external energy, was making progress on the path toward his own ruination. He therefore considered the acts of the external energy to be supreme, yet he also saw how the internal energy of the Lord helped him in that particular situation. A devotee is always in a renounced temperament because the worldly attractions can never satisfy him. Vidura was never attracted by the royal palace of his brother. He was always ready to leave the place and devote himself completely to the transcendental loving service of the Lord. Now he got the opportunity by the grace of Duryodhana, and instead of being sorry at the strong words of insult, he thanked him from within because it gave him the chance to live alone in a holy place and fully engage in the devotional service of the Lord. The word gata-vyathaḥ (without being sorry) is significant here because Vidura was relieved from the tribulations which trouble every man entangled in material activities. He therefore thought that there was no need to defend his brother with his bow because his brother was meant for ruination. Thus he left the palace before Duryodhana could act. Māyā, the supreme energy of the Lord, acted here both internally and externally.
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