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raja uvaca—the King said; kutra—wherein; ksattuh—with Vidura; bhagavata—and with His Grace; maitreyena—with Maitreya; asa—there was; sangamah—meeting; kada—when; va—also; saha—with; samvadah—discussion; etat—this; varnaya—describe; nah—unto me; prabho—O my lord.

The King asked Sukadeva Gosvami: 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.

Exactly as Saunaka Rsi inquired of Suta Gosvami and Suta Gosvami replied, so Srila Sukadeva Gosvami replied to King Pariksit’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 alparthodayas tasya

vidurasyamalatmanah

tasmin variyasi prasnah

sadhu-vadopabrmhitah

na—never; hi—certainly; alpa-artha—small (unimportant) purpose; udayah—raised; tasya—his; vidurasya—of Vidura; amala-atmanah—of the saintly man; tasmin—in that; variyasi—highly purposeful; prasnah—question; sadhu-vada—things approved by saints and sages; upabrmhitah—full with.

Saint Vidura was a great and pure devotee of the Lord, and therefore his questions to His Grace Rsi Maitreya must have been very purposeful, on the highest level, and approved by learned circles.

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-gita, the discussion was between Lord Sri Krsna 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-gita 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 Srimad-Bhagavatam, 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, Maharaja Pariksit was serious about learning the science of God, and Sukadeva Gosvami was a bona fide spiritual master in the transcendental science. Both of them knew that the topics discussed by Vidura and Rsi Maitreya were elevated, and thus Maharaja Pariksit was very interested in learning from the bona fide spiritual master.

SB3.1.5

TEXT 5

suta uvaca

sa evam rsi-varyo ’yam

prsto rajna pariksita

praty aha tam subahu-vit

pritatma sruyatam iti

sutah uvaca—Sri Suta Gosvami said; sah—he; evam—thus; rsi-varyah—the great rsi; ayam—Sukadeva Gosvami; prstah—being questioned; rajna—by the King; pariksita—Maharaja Pariksit; prati—to; aha—replied; tam—unto the King; su-bahu-vit—highly experienced; prita-atma—fully satisfied; sruyatam—please hear me; iti—thus.

Sri Suta Gosvami said: The great sage Sukadeva Gosvami 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

sri-suka uvaca

yada tu raja sva-sutan asadhun

pusnan na dharmena vinasta-drstih

bhratur yavisthasya sutan vibandhun

pravesya laksa-bhavane dadaha

SYNONYMS

sri-sukah uvaca—Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; yada—when; tu—but; raja—King Dhrtarastra; sva-sutan—his own sons; asadhun—dishonest; pusnan—nourishing; na—never; dharmena—on the right path; vinasta-drstih—one who has lost his insight; bhratuh—of his brother; yavisthasya—younger; sutan—sons; vibandhun—having no guardian (father); pravesya—made to enter; laksa—lacquer; bhavane—in the house; dadaha—set on fire.

TRANSLATION

Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said: King Dhrtarastra 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 Pandavas.

PURPORT

Dhrtarastra 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

yada sabhayam kuru-deva-devyah

kesabhimarsam suta-karma garhyam

na varayam asa nrpah snusayah

svasrair harantyah kuca-kunkumani

yada—when; sabhayam—the assembly; kuru-deva-devyah—of Draupadi, the wife of godly Yudhisthira; kesa-abhimarsam—insult by grabbing her hair; suta-karma—action taken by his son; garhyam—which was abominable; na—did not; varayam asa—forbid; nrpah—the King; snusayah—of his daughter-in-law; svasraih—by her tears; harantyah—of she who was washing; kuca-kunkumani—red dust on her breast.

The King did not forbid his son Duhsasana’s abominable action of grabbing the hair of Draupadi, the wife of the godly King Yudhisthira, even though her tears washed the red dust on her breast.

SB3.1.8

TEXT 8

dyute tv adharmena jitasya sadhoh

satyavalambasya vanam gatasya

na yacato ’dat samayena dayam

tamo-jusano yad ajata-satroh

SYNONYMS

dyute—by means of gambling; tu—but; adharmena—by unfair tricks; jitasya—of the vanquished; sadhoh—a saintly person; satya-avalambasya—one who embraced truth as shelter; vanam—forest; gatasya—of the goer; na—never; yacatah—when asked for; adat—delivered; samayena—in due course; dayam—right share; tamah-jusanah—overwhelmed by illusion; yat—as much as; ajata-satroh—of one who had no enemy.

TRANSLATION

Yudhisthira, 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 Dhrtarastra, who was overwhelmed by illusion.

PURPORT

Maharaja Yudhisthira was the rightful heir to his father’s kingdom. But just to favor his own sons, headed by Duryodhana, Dhrtarastra, Maharaja Yudhisthira’s uncle, adopted various unfair means to cheat his nephews of their rightful share of the kingdom. At last the Pandavas 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 Kuruksetra. The Battle of Kuruksetra, therefore, was induced by the Kurus, and not the Pandavas.

As ksatriyas, the proper livelihood of the Pandavas was only to rule, and not to accept any other occupation. A brahmana, ksatriya or vaisya will not accept employment for his livelihood under any circumstances.

SB3.1.9

TEXT 9

yada ca partha-prahitah sabhayam

jagad-gurur yani jagada krsnah

na tani pumsam amrtayanani

rajoru mene ksata-punya-lesah

yada—when; ca—also; partha-prahitah—being advised by Arjuna; sabhayam—in the assembly; jagat-guruh—of the teacher of the world; yani—those; jagada—went; krsnah—Lord Krsna; na—never; tani—such words; pumsam—of all men of sense; amrta-ayanani—as good as nectar; raja—the King (Dhrtarastra or Duryodhana); uru—very important; mene—did consider; ksata—dwindling; punya-lesah—fragment of pious acts.

Lord Krsna was sent by Arjuna into the assembly as the spiritual master of the whole world, and although His words were heard by some [like Bhisma] as pure nectar, it was not so for the others, who were completely bereft of the last farthing of past pious works. The King [Dhrtarastra or Duryodhana] did not take the words of Lord Krsna very seriously.

Lord Krsna, 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 Dhrtarastra on a peace mission. Krsna 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 Bhisma 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, Dhrtarastra, 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 Pandavas. 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

yadopahuto bhavanam pravisto

mantraya prstah kila purvajena

athaha tan mantra-drsam variyan

yan mantrino vaidurikam vadanti

yada—when; upahutah—was called by; bhavanam—the palace; pravistah—entered; mantraya—for consultation; prstah—asked by; kila—of course; purvajena—by the elder brother; atha—thus; aha—said; tat—that; mantra—advice; drsam—just suitable; variyan—excellent; yat—that which; mantrinah—the ministers of state, or expert politicians; vaidurikam—instructions by Vidura; vadanti—do they say.

When Vidura was invited by his elder brother [Dhrtarastra] 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.

Political suggestions by Vidura are known as expert, just as, in modern times, Pandita Canakya is considered the authority in good counsel in both political and moral instructions.

SB3.1.11

TEXT 11

ajata-satroh pratiyaccha dayam

titiksato durvisaham tavagah

sahanujo yatra vrkodarahih

svasan rusa yat tvam alam bibhesi

ajata-satroh—of Yudhisthira, who has no enemy; pratiyaccha—return; dayam—legitimate share; titiksatah—of he who is so forbearing; durvisaham—unbearable; tava—your; agah—offense; saha—along with; anujah—younger brothers; yatra—wherein; vrkodara—Bhima; ahih—revenging snake; svasan—breathing heavily; rusa—in anger; yat—whom; tvam—you; alam—verily; bibhesi—do fear.

[Vidura said:] You must now return the legitimate share to Yudhisthira, 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 Bhima, breathing heavily like a snake. Surely you are afraid of him.

SB3.1.12

TEXT 12

parthams tu devo bhagavan mukundo

grhitavan saksiti-deva-devah

aste sva-puryam yadu-deva-devo

vinirjitasesa-nrdeva-devah

SYNONYMS

parthan—the sons of Prtha (Kunti); tu—but; devah—the Lord; bhagavan—the Personality of Godhead; mukundah—Sri Krsna, who awards liberation; grhitavan—has taken up; sa—with; ksiti-deva-devah—the brahmanas and the demigods; aste—is present; sva-puryam—along with His family; yadu-deva-devah—worshiped by the royal order of the Yadu dynasty; vinirjita—who have been conquered; asesa—unlimited; nrdeva—kings; devah—Lord.

TRANSLATION

Lord Krsna, the Personality of Godhead, has accepted the sons of Prtha as His kinsmen, and all the kings of the world are with Lord Sri Krsna. 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 Dhrtarastra very good counsel regarding political alliance with the sons of Prtha, the Pandavas. The first thing he said was that Lord Krsna was intimately related with them as their cousin. Because Lord Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He is worshipable by all brahmanas and demigods, who are the controllers of the universal affairs. Besides that, Lord Krsna and His family members, the royal order of the Yadu dynasty, were the conquerors of all kings of the world.

The ksatriyas used to fight the kings of various dominions and kidnap their beautiful princess-daughters, after conquering their relatives. This system was laudable because the ksatriyas and the princesses would be married only on the basis of the chivalry of the conquering ksatriya. 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 Pandavas was fraught with many dangers because they were supported by Lord Krsna, who had conquered, even in His childhood, demons like Kamsa and Jarasandha and demigods like Brahma and Indra. Therefore all universal power was behind the Pandavas.

SB3.1.13

TEXT 13

sa esa dosah purusa-dvid aste

grhan pravisto yam apatya-matya

pusnasi krsnad vimukho gata-sris

tyajasv asaivam kula-kausalaya

sah—he; esah—this; dosah—offense personified; purusa-dvit—envious of Lord Krsna; aste—exists; grhan—household; pravistah—entered; yam—whom; apatya-matya—thinking to be your son; pusnasi—maintaining; krsnat—from Krsna; vimukhah—in opposition; gata-srih—devoid of everything auspicious; tyaja—give up; asu—as soon as possible; asaivam—inauspicious; kula—family; kausalaya—for the sake of.

You are maintaining offense personified, Duryodhana, as your infallible son, but he is envious of Lord Krsna. And because you are thus maintaining a nondevotee of Krsna, you are devoid of all auspicious qualities. Relieve yourself of this ill fortune as soon as possible and do good to the whole family!

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, Visnu. This system is still prevalent in India. After the death of his father, a son goes to offer sacrifices at the lotus feet of Visnu at Gaya and thus delivers the father’s soul if the father is fallen. But if the son is already an enemy of Visnu, how, in such an inimical mood, can he offer sacrifice unto Lord Visnu’s lotus feet? Lord Krsna is directly the Personality of Godhead, Visnu, and Duryodhana was inimical to Him. He would therefore be unable to protect his father, Dhrtarastra, after his death. He himself was to fall down because of his faithlessness towards Visnu. How, then, could he protect his father? Vidura advised Dhrtarastra 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 Canakya Pandita, “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 Dhrtarastra, as foreseen by Vidura. Vidura therefore rightly advised his eldest brother to get rid of this source of trouble. Dhrtarastra 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 ucivams tatra suyodhanena

pravrddha-kopa-sphuritadharena

asat-krtah sat-sprhaniya-silah

ksatta sakarnanuja-saubalena

iti—thus; ucivan—while speaking; tatra—there; suyodhanena—by Duryodhana; pravrddha—swollen with; kopa—anger; sphurita—flapping; adharena—lips; asat-krtah—insulted; sat—respectable; sprhaniya-silah—desirable qualities; ksatta—Vidura; sa—with; karna—Karna; anuja—younger brothers; saubalena—with Sakuni.

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 Karna, his younger brothers and his maternal uncle Sakuni.

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 Sakuni, his maternal uncle, as well as with his friend Karna, who always encouraged Duryodhana in his nefarious acts.

SB3.1.15

TEXT 15

ka enam atropajuhava jihmam

dasyah sutam yad-balinaiva pustah

tasmin pratipah parakrtya aste

nirvasyatam asu purac chvasanah

kah—who; enam—this; atra—here; upajuhava—called for; jihmam—crooked; dasyah—of a kept mistress; sutam—son; yat—whose; balina—by whose subsistence; eva—certainly; pustah—grown up; tasmin—unto him; pratipah—enmity; parakrtya—enemy’s interest; aste—situated; nirvasyatam—get him out; asu—immediately; purat—from the palace; svasanah—let him breathe only.

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.

When getting married, the ksatriya kings would take on several other youthful girls along with the married princess. These girl attendants of the king were known as dasis, or attendant mistresses. By intimate association with the king, the dasis would get sons. Such sons were called dasi-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 dasi, and he was thus not counted amongst the ksatriyas. King Dhrtarastra was very affectionate toward his younger dasi-putra brother, Vidura, and Vidura was a great friend and philosophical advisor to Dhrtarastra. 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 Yudhisthira, 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 Pandavas because he advised King Dhrtarastra 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

svayam dhanur dvari nidhaya mayam

bhratuh puro marmasu tadito ’pi

sa ittham atyulbana-karna-banair

gata-vyatho ’yad uru manayanah

svayam—he himself; dhanuh dvari—bow on the door; nidhaya—keeping; mayam—the external nature; bhratuh—brother’s; purah—from the palace; marmasu—in the core of the heart; taditah—being afflicted; api—in spite of; sah—he (Vidura); ittham—like this; ati-ulbana—severely; karna—ear; banaih—by the arrows; gata-vyathah—without being sorry; ayat—excited; uru—great; mana-yanah—so thinking.

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.