r Padmin Ekda

Issue no: 15

28th June 2015

THe Life of Vidura

Features
The Birth Of Vidura
Mahbhrata

Animandavya Curses Yamaraja

Mahbhrata

No One Equal To Vidura

Mahbhrata

Partiality Towards The Pandavas

Mahbhrata

Vidura Goes For Pilgrimage

Srila Sukadeva Goswami

Viduras Returning To Hastinapur

Srila Suta Goswami

Vidura Was Never A dra

His Divine Grace
A .C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Issue no 15, Page 2

Srila Vyasdeva and Mother Satyavati

The Birth Of Vidura

Sri Vaisampayana Muni

Satyavati had borne two powerful sons, both

died without producing an heir to the throne.
To save the Kuru dynasty, she summoned
upon the powerful i Vyasadeva, her firstborn son. Vyasadeva came directly from his
practice of harsh asceticism in the Himalayas
and appeared in a repulsive condition.
Satyavati was impatient, she asked the queen
Ambika to immediately prepare to beget a son
from the sage. The queen was in shock seeing
the ascetic sage and closed her eyes in fear as
soon as the sage arrived. Vyasadeva explained
to Satyavati of the situation and warned her
about his vows. He said the queen will bear
a son who will be as strong as ten thousand
elephants. He will be vastly intelligent, wise
and prosperous. He will have a hundred sons.
But, O pious lady, for the fault of his mother he
will be born blind.

Satyavati was shocked. She became
very anxious and again asked Vyasadeva
to approach the other queen, Ambalika.
Vyasadeva looked upon his anxious mother
with compassion. He soothed her fears and
agreed to return only when Ambalika was
prepared to receive him. Even though she had
been warned by her sister what to expect, the

nitya bhgavata-sevay
princess was still struck with horror when the
grim ascetic approached her. She turned pale
with fright, although she kept her eyes open as
she conceived.

Ambika gave birth to a blind child who
was named Dhritarashtra. Ambalika delivered
a pale child who was nevertheless effulgent
and endowed with many auspicious marks
on his body, and who was named Pandu in
accord with Vyasadevas words. Soon after,
the sage again came to the palace in order to
approach Ambika for a second time.

The queen was alarmed at the prospect
of meeting again with the terrible-looking
i. She went to a maidservant who was an
intimate friend and asked that she take her
place. Giving the servant her own ornaments
and adorning her with the finest robes, she
had her wait in the bedchamber for the sage.

Although he knew everything the i
entered the chamber as before. As soon as she
saw the exalted sage the maidservant rose up
respectfully. She bowed at his feet and had him
sit down comfortably. After gently washing
his feet, the girl offered him many kinds of
delicious foodstuffs. Vyasadeva was pleased.
After laying with the girl, he said, O goodnatured girl, you shall be a maidservant no
longer. Your son from our union will be wise,
fortunate and the foremost of all intelligent
men upon this earth.

Again Satyavati was waiting outside the
bedchamber. Vyasadeva told her, The queen
deceived me and sent instead her servant.
That simple girl received me with all respect.
She will therefore bear an auspicious child.
O Mother, I shall now go and continue my
asceticism. I will return when you need me
again, but I will not beget any more children.
Vyasadeva vanished, leaving Bhishma and
Satyavati reflecting on his words.

The maidservant gave birth to a child
named Vidura, who later became the chief
minister and advisor of the Kuru house. He was
raised alongside his two brothers, and the three
boys grew up like resplendent gods. Everyone
was satisfied that the kingdom was secure.
Happiness and prosperity were everywhere
as the gods showered their blessings on the
kingdom. Bhishma ruled as regent while the
boys grew up.
--- Taken from the book 'Mahbhrata' Retold by Krishna Dharma
dasa. Chapter 1: Birth of the Kuru Elders.

nitya bhgavata-sevay

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Issue no 15, Page 3

Animandavya Curses Yamaraja

Mahbhrata

bhrtu ketre bhujiyy jta satyavat-sutt

Translation: I know that you are now Vidura due to the cursing of
Mavya Muni and that formerly you were King Yamarja, the great
controller of living entities after their death. You were begotten by the son
of Satyavat, Vysadeva, in the kept wife of his brother.
---rmad-Bhgavatam (Bhgavata Pura) 3.5.20

Yamaraja narrating Mandavya muni's past life

Once there was a famous brhmaa named

Mandavya*. He did tapasya (penance) for many
years standing silent in front of his ashrama,
under a tree, raising his hands in prayer. At
that time some thieves happened to pass by
that place, with stolen property belonging to
the King. Finding that the King's men were
pursuing them, the thieves fled away after
leaving their stolen property in Mandavya's
Ashrama. The King's men seized Mandavya
with the king's property. Even prolonged and
repeated questionings did not bring out a single
word from Mandavya. At last the thieves were
caught. Mistaking him as one of the thieves,
the King's men produced Mandavya also
along with the thieves before the King. The
thieves were all condemned to death. The
royal executioners took all of them to the place
of execution and stuck them up at the tip of a
trident (la). The thieves died, but even after a
long time Mandavya did not die.
In Mahbhrata, Anusana-parva,
Verses 4651, it is said that at this stage Shiva
appeared and blessed him with longevity and
then vanished. Several munis in the shape of
birds came near Mandavya who was lying on
the trident and made enquiries about him. The
King came to know of all these stories. Full of
repentance, he went and begged pardon of
Mandavya. The attempt to pull out the trident
from Mandavya's body failed. At last it was
removed by cutting it off. Since the tip (Ani) of
the trident was left behind in his body he was
thereafter known as "Ani Mandavya".

After going about in the world for many
years with the tip of the trident in his body, Ani
Mandavya once asked Dharma : "Oh Lord! why
is it that an innocent man like me is afflicted
with the trident ?". Dharma answered: "In your
boyhood you once caught small birds and
pierced them with a grass reed. It is a result of
that sin that you have been pierced with the
trident." Mandavya replied : "The stras ordain
*mavya-pd bhagavn praj-sayamano yama

that there shall be no punishment for sins

committed till the age of twelve. Therefore the
punishment inflicted on me is wrong. As the
murder of a brhmaa is a greater sin than any
other murder, may you be born as a man in the
dra caste."

By the above curse of Mandavya,
Dharma was born as son of a dra woman.
It was this child who later on became the
renowned Vidura.
--- Mahbhrata di-parva: Adivansavatarana Parva: Section LXIII.
Taken from the book 'The Mahbhrata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa'
Translated into English Prose from the Original Sanskrit Text by Kisari
Mohan Ganguli [1883-1896]

No One Equal To Vidura

Mahbhrata

Dhritarashtra, Pandu and Vidura were of

great intelligence from their birth brought up
by Bhishma, as if they were his own sons.
And the children, having passed through the
usual rites of their order, devoted themselves
to vows and study. And they grew up into
fine young men skilled in the Vedas and all
athletic sports. And they became well skilled
in the practice of bow, in horsemanship, in
encounters with mace, sword and shield, in

Issue no 15, Page 4

the management of elephants in battle, and in
the science of morality. Well-read in history and
the Puras and various branches of learning,
and acquainted with the truths of the Vedas
and their branches they acquired knowledge,
which was versatile and deep. And Pandu,
possessed of great prowess, excelled all men
in archery while Dhritarashtra excelled all in
personal strength, while in the three worlds
there was no one equal to Vidura in devotion
to virtue and in the knowledge of the dictates
of morality. And beholding the restoration of
the extinct line of Shantanu, the saying became
current in all countries that among mothers of
heroes, the daughters of the king of Kashi were
the first; that among countries Kurujangala was
the first; that among virtuous men, Vidura was
the first; that among cities Hastinapura was the
first.

Meanwhile the son of Ganga(Bhishma)
heard that king Devaka had a daughter endued
with youth and beauty and begotten upon
a dra wife. Bringing her from her father's
abode, Bhishma married her to Vidura of great
wisdom. And Vidura begot upon her many
children like himself in accomplishments.
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--- The Mahbhrata, Book 1: di-parva: Sambhava Parva: Section CIX

& CXIV aken from the book 'The Mahbhrata of Krishna-Dwaipayana
Vyasa' Translated into English Prose from the Original Sanskrit Text by
Kisari Mohan Ganguli [1883-1896]

Partiality Towards The Pandavas

Mahbhrata

Vidura was the most intelligent and wisest

man of his time, and he always favoured
righteousness. Though he viewed the Kauravas
and the Pandavas with equal favour, in his heart
he felt some partiality towards the Pandavas,
because they were virtuous, whereas the
Kauravas were becoming more and more
wicked. As this partiality arose from his sense
of righteousness, nobody could blame Vidura
for this. His aim was the prosperity of the Lunar
dynasty of Kings. Many ill omens were seen
at the time of the birth of Duryodhana. Vidura
understood that if that infant grew up he would
be a comet to the Lunar dynasty. It is mentioned
in Mahbhrata, di-parva, Chapter 115, that
Vidura advised Dhritarashtra that it would be
better for him to throw away that infant.

The death of Pandu drew Vidura
closer to the Pandavas. Vidura took the lead

nitya bhgavata-sevay
in performing the funeral rites and other
ceremonies which followed. The Pandavas
were very sad and miserable at the death of
their father. It was at this time that Duryodhana
poisoned Bhimasena, tied him with a rope and
threw him into the river Ganges. Bhimasena
was carried to the world of nagas (serpents).
Kunti felt grieved at the loss of her son Bhima,
but Vidura consoled her.

It was due to the wisdom of Vidura
that the Pandavas escaped from the disaster
in the lac-house. As soon as Duryodhana had
completed the lac-house, Vidura understood
the deception lying hidden under it and he
informed the Pandavas of everything about it.
Moreover he sent a man named Khanaka and
made an underground passage from the lachouse. When the lac-house was burnt down,
the Pandavas escaped by the underground
passage and reached the banks of the Ganges.
Vidura had sent a ferryman secretly to take them
to the other side of the Ganges. When Bhishma
got the news that the Pandavas had been burnt
to death in the lac-house he became very sad.
It is mentioned in Mahbhrata, di-parva,
Chapter 149, that Vidura informed Bhishma
secretly that the Pandavas were not dead.

After this event the Pandavas come into
the scene only at the svayavara (marriage)
of Panchali or Draupadi. Bhishma and Drona
proposed that the Pandavas should be brought
back and be given half of the kingdom. Vidura,
by his arguments convinced Dhritarashtra
that the proposal of Bhishma and Drona
was correct. Dhritarashtra asked Vidura to
bring the Pandavas back. Vidura went to the
city of Drupada and brought the Pandavas
back and consoled their mother Kunti. After
this Yudhisthira performed rjasya-yaja
(sacrifice of royal consecration). Vidura took
part in it and took the charge of financial part
of the sacrifice. It was after this, Duryodhana
challenged Yudhisthira for a game of dice.
Vidura saw beforehand that this move on the
part of Duryodhana was dangerous. So he
talked forcibly against this, and gave warning
to all concerned. As Duryodhana did not agree
with Vidura, he was scolded. But Duryodhana
was firm and the game was conducted.
Panchali was harassed by means of stripping
and the Pandavas went to the forest. It is stated
in Mahbhrata, Vna-parva, Chapter 3, that
Vidura had been witnessing all these scenes

nitya bhgavata-sevay
with wet eyes.

When the Pandavas were driven to the
forest, Dhritarashtra felt sorry. He became more
afraid of the people than he was sorry for the
Pandavas. He understood that his subjects
would unite and rise against his sons. He called
Vidura and asked him for a remedy. Vidura who
was full of impatience, made a speech against
the wickedness of the sons of Dhritarashtra
and advised him to forsake his own sons and
to bring the Pandavas back and give them
the kingdom. Dhritarashtra did not like this
approach. He said that Vidura was partial
to the Pandavas and asked him to go away
from the palace. Vidura became aggrieved at
this. He followed the Pandavas, and walking
a long distance, reached the forest Kamyaka
and met the Pandavas. When Vidura had gone
Dhritarashtra felt miserable. He sent for Vidura
and when he returned Dhritarashtra begged
for pardon. Vidura again became the adviser
of Dhritarashtra. (Mahbhrata, Vna-parva,
Chapter 6) .
--- Taken from the book Puranic Encyclopaedia, A Comprehensive
Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature by
Vettam Mani

Vidura Goes For Pilgrimage

Srila Sukadeva Goswami

King Dhritarashtra 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. The King did not forbid his son
Dushasana'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. 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 Dhritarashtra, who was
overwhelmed by illusion.

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

Issue no 15, Page 5

take the words of Lord Krishna very seriously.
When Vidura was invited by his elder brother
[Dhritarashtra] 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.
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. Lord Krishna, the Personality of Godhead,
has accepted the sons of Pritha as His kinsmen,
and all the kings of the world are with Lord
Sri Krishna. 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. You are maintaining offense personified,
Duryodhana, as your infallible son, but he is
envious of Lord Krishna. And because you are
thus maintaining a nondevotee of Krishna, you
are devoid of all auspicious qualities. Relieve
yourself of this ill fortune as soon as possible
and do good to the whole family!

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 Shakuni. He said: 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.

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. By his piety, Vidura achieved the
advantages of the pious Kauravas. After leaving
Hastinapura, he took shelter of many places
of pilgrimages, which are the Lord's lotus feet.
With a desire to gain a high order of pious life,
he traveled to holy places where thousands of
transcendental forms of the Lord are situated. He
began to travel alone, thinking only of Krishna,

Issue no 15, Page 6

through various holy places like Ayodhya,
Dwaraka and Mathura. He traveled where the
air, hill, orchard, river and lake are all pure and
sinless and where the forms of the Unlimited
decorate the temples. Thus he performed the
pilgrim's progress.

While so traversing the earth, he simply
performed duties to please the Supreme Lord
Hari. His occupation was pure and independent.
He was constantly sanctified by taking his bath
in holy places, although he was in the dress of a
mendicant and had no hair dressing nor a bed
on which to lie. Thus he was always unseen by
his various relatives. Thus, when he was in the
land of Bharatavarsha travelling to all the places
of pilgrimage, he visited Prabhasakshetra. At
that time Maharaja Yudhisthira was the emperor
and held the world under one military strength
and one flag.

At the place of pilgrimage at Prabhasa,
it came to his knowledge that all his relatives
had died due to violent passion, just as an entire
forest burns due to fire produced by the friction
of bamboos. After this he proceeded west,
where the River Sarasvati flows. On the bank
of the River Sarasvati there were eleven places
of pilgrimage, namely, (1) Trita, (2) Ushana,
(3) Manu, (4) Prithu, (5) Agni, (6) Asita, (7)
Vayu, (8) Sudasa, (9) Go, (10) Guha and (11)
Sraddhadeva. Vidura visited all of them and
duly performed rituals. There were also many
other temples of various forms of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead Vishnu, established by
great sages and demigods. These temples were
marked with the chief emblems of the Lord,
and they reminded one always of the original
Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna.

Thereafter he passed through very
wealthy provinces like Surat, Sauvira and
Matsya and through western India, known as
Kurujangala. At last he reached the bank of the
Yamuna, where he happened to meet Uddhava,
the great devotee of Lord Krishna. Then, due to
his great love and feeling, Vidura embraced him
[Uddhava], who was a constant companion of
Lord Krishna and formerly a great student of
Brihaspati's. Vidura then asked him for news
of the family of Lord Krishna, the Personality of
Godhead.
rmad-Bhgavatam (Bhgavata Pura) Canto 3: The Status Quo
Chapter1: Questions by Vidura Verses: 6 to 25

nitya bhgavata-sevay
Viduras Returning To Hastinapur
Sri Suta Goswami

While traveling on a pilgrimage, Vidura

received knowledge of the destination of the
self from the great sage Maitreya and then
returned to Hastinapura. He became as well
versed in the subject as he desired. After asking
various questions and becoming established
in the transcendental loving service of Lord
Krishna, Vidura retired from putting questions
to Maitreya Muni. When they saw Vidura return
to the palace, all the inhabitants-Maharaja
Yudhisthira, his younger brothers, Dhritarashtra,
Satyaki, Sanjaya, Kripacharya, Kunti, Gandhari,
Draupadi, Subhadra, Uttara, Kripi, many other
wives of the Kauravas, and other ladies with
children-all hurried to him in great delight.
It so appeared that they had regained their
consciousness after a long period. With great
delight they all approached him, as if life had
returned to their bodies. They exchanged
obeisances and welcomed each other with
embraces. Due to anxieties and long separation,
they all cried out of affection. King Yudhisthira
then arranged to offer sitting accommodations
and a reception. After Vidura ate sumptuously
and took sufficient rest, he was comfortably
seated. Then the King began to speak to him,
and all who were present there listened.
Maharaja Yudhisthira said: My uncle, do you
remember how you always protected us, along
with our mother, from all sorts of calamities?
Your partiality, like the wings of a bird, saved us
from poisoning and arson. While traveling on
the surface of the earth, how did you maintain
your livelihood? At which holy places and
pilgrimage sites did you render service? My
Lord, devotees like your good self are verily
holy places personified. Because you carry the
Personality of Godhead within your heart, you
turn all places into places of pilgrimage. My
uncle, you must have visited Dwaraka. In that
holy place are our friends and well-wishers, the
descendants of Yadu, who are always rapt in
the service of the Lord Sri Krishna. You might
have seen them or heard about them. Are they
all living happily in their abodes?

Thus being questioned by Maharaja
Yudhisthira, Mahatma Vidura gradually
described everything he had personally
experienced, except news of the annihilation

nitya bhgavata-sevay

Dhritarashtra quits his body

of the Yadu dynasty. Compassionate Mahatma

Vidura could not stand to see the Pandavas
distressed at any time. Therefore he did not
disclose this unpalatable and unbearable
incident because calamities come of their
own accord. Thus Mahatma Vidura, being
treated just like a godly person by his kinsmen,
remained there for a certain period just to rectify
the mentality of his eldest brother and in this
way bring happiness to all the others. As long
as Vidura played the part of a dra, being
cursed by Mandavya Muni, Aryama officiated
at the post of Yamaraja to punish those who
committed sinful acts.

Having won his kingdom and observed
the birth of one grandson competent to
continue the noble tradition of his family,
Maharaja Yudhisthira reigned peacefully and
enjoyed uncommon opulence in cooperation
with his younger brothers, who were all
expert administrators to the common people.
Insurmountable, eternal time imperceptibly
overcomes those who are too much attached to
family affairs and are always engrossed in their
thought.

Mahatma Vidura knew all this, and
therefore he addressed Dhritarashtra, saying: My
dear King, please get out of here immediately.
Do not delay. Just see how fear has overtaken
you. This frightful situation cannot be remedied
by any person in this material world. My lord, it is
the Supreme Personality of Godhead as eternal
time [kla] that has approached us all. Whoever
is under the influence of supreme kla [eternal
time] must surrender his most dear life, and what
to speak of other things, such as wealth, honor,
children, land and home. Your father, brother,
well-wishers and sons are all dead and passed
away. You yourself have expended the major
portion of your life, your body is now overtaken
by invalidity, and you are living in the home of
another. You have been blind from your very
birth, and recently you have become hard of
hearing. Your memory is shortened, and your
intelligence is disturbed. Your teeth are loose,
your liver is defective, and you are coughing up
mucus.

Alas, how powerful are the hopes of a
living being to continue his life. Verily, you are
living just like a household dog and are eating
remnants of food given by Bhima. There is
no need to live a degraded life and subsist on
the charity of those whom you tried to kill by

Issue no 15, Page 7

arson and poisoning. You also insulted one of

their wives and usurped their kingdom and
wealth. Despite your unwillingness to die and
your desire to live even at the cost of honor
and prestige, your miserly body will certainly
dwindle and deteriorate like an old garment. He
is called undisturbed who goes to an unknown,
remote place and, freed from all obligations,
quits his material body when it has become
useless. He is certainly a first-class man who
awakens and understands, either by himself or
from others, the falsity and misery of this material
world and thus leaves home and depends fully
on the Personality of Godhead residing within
his heart. Please, therefore, leave for the north
immediately, without letting your relatives
know, for soon that time will approach which
will diminish the good qualities of men. Thus
Maharaja Dhritarashtra, the scion of the family
of Ajamidha, firmly convinced by introspective
knowledge [praj], broke at once the strong
network of familial affection by his resolute
determination. Thus he immediately left home
to set out on the path of liberation, as directed
by his younger brother Vidura. The gentle
and chaste Gandhari, who was the daughter
of King Subala of Kandahar [or Gandhara],
followed her husband, seeing that he was

Issue no 15, Page 8

going to the Himalaya Mountains, which are
the delight of those who have accepted the staff
of the renounced order like fighters who have
accepted a good lashing from the enemy.
rmad-Bhgavatam (Bhgavata Pura) Canto 1: Creation
Chapter13: Dhritarashtra Quits Home Verses: 1 to 30

Vidura Was Never A dra

His Divine Grace
A .C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Vidura, born of the womb of a dra woman,

was forbidden even to be a party of royal
heritage along with his brothers Dhritarashtra
and Pandu. Then how could he occupy the
post of a preacher to instruct such learned
kings and katriyas as Dhritarashtra and
Maharaja Yudhisthira? The first answer is that
even though it is accepted that he was a dra
by birth, because he renounced the world for
spiritual enlightenment by the authority of i
Maitreya and was thoroughly educated by him
in transcendental knowledge, he was quite
competent to occupy the post of an crya, or
spiritual preceptor. According to Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu, anyone who is conversant in
the transcendental knowledge, or the science
of Godhead, be he a brhmaa or a dra,
a householder or a sannys, is eligible to
become a spiritual master. Even in the ordinary
moral codes (as stated by Chanakya Pandit, the
great politician and moralist) there is no harm
in taking lessons from a person who may be by
birth less than a dra. This is one part of the
answer. The other is that Vidura was not actually
a dra. He was to play the part of a so-called
dra for one hundred years, being cursed by
Mandavya Muni. He was the incarnation of
Yamaraja, one of the twelve mahjanas, on the
level with such exalted personalities as Brahma,
Narada, Shiva, Kapila, Bhishma, Prahlada, etc.
Being a mahjana, it is the duty of Yamaraja
to preach the cult of devotion to the people
of the world, as Narada, Brahma, and other
mahjanas do. But Yamaraja is always busy
in his Plutonic kingdom punishing the doers of
sinful acts. Yamaraja is deputed by the Lord to a
particular planet, some hundreds of thousands
of miles away from the planet of earth, to take
away the corrupt souls after death and convict
them in accordance with their respective sinful
activities.

Thus Yamaraja has very little time to take

nitya bhgavata-sevay
leave from his responsible office of punishing
the wrongdoers. There are more wrongdoers
than righteous men. Therefore Yamaraja has to
do more work than other demigods who are
also authorized agents of the Supreme Lord. But
he wanted to preach the glories of the Lord, and
therefore by the will of the Lord he was cursed
by Mandavya Muni to come into the world in
the incarnation of Vidura and work very hard
as a great devotee. Such a devotee is neither a
dra nor a brhmaa. He is transcendental
to such divisions of mundane society, just
as the Personality of Godhead assumes His
incarnation as a hog but He is neither a hog nor
a Brahma. He is above all mundane creatures.
The Lord and His different authorized devotees
sometimes have to play the role of many lower
creatures to claim the conditioned souls, but
both the Lord and His pure devotees are always
in the transcendental position. When Yamaraja
thus incarnated himself as Vidura, his post was
officiated by Aryama, one of the many sons of
Kashyapa and Aditi. The Adityas are sons of
Aditi, and there are twelve Adityas. Aryama is
one of the twelve Adityas, and therefore it was
quite possible for him to take charge of the
office of Yamaraja during his one hundred years'
absence in the form of Vidura. The conclusion is
that Vidura was never a dra, but was greater
than the purest type of brhmaa.
rmad-Bhgavatam (Bhgavata Pura) Canto 1: Creation
Chapter13: Dhritarashtra Quits Home Verses : 15 Purport

!! Sri Sri Nitai Gaurchandra Jayati !!

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