Srimad-Bhagavatam, Canto 01 Chapter 13 Purports - Dhrtarastra Quits Home: Difference between revisions
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A
- A chaste wife like Gandhari would feel the separation of her husband to be more burning than actual fire. Such a lady can observe the sati rite voluntarily, and there is no criminal force by anyone
- A cloud in the sky undoubtedly appears to be a reality because it rains, and due to rains so many temporary green things appear, but in the ultimate issue, everything disappears, namely the cloud, rain and green vegetation, all in due course
- A conditioned living being is under the full control of material nature, represented by eternal time and activities under the dictation of different modes of nature
- A conditioned soul is already degraded by the material association, and still in the Kali-yuga the good qualities of a man will deteriorate to the lowest standard
- A demon of the name Jatasura kidnapped her (Draupadi), but her second husband, Bhimasena, killed the demon and saved her. She saved the Pandavas from the curse of Maharsi Durvasa by the grace of Lord Krsna
- A devotee never finds fault with others, but tries to find his own and thus rectify them as far as possible
- A great Indian scientist, busy in the planmaking business, was suddenly called by invincible eternal time while going to attend a very important meeting of the planning commission, and he had to surrender his life, wife, children, house, land, wealth etc
- A life is called miserly because one cannot properly utilize the assets of the human form of life
- A living being cannot be a nondevotee of the Lord because of his constitutional position, but when one becomes a nondevotee or nonbeliever, it is to be understood that the person concerned is not in a sound condition of life
- A living being is placed in a particular position by the order of the Supreme Lord, and he is again shifted from that place by the order of the Supreme Lord or His authorized agents
- A man who has no control over the tongue at first can hardly become a yogi. Yogi and bhogi are two opposite terms. The bhogi, or the merry man who eats and drinks, cannot be a yogi, for a yogi is never allowed to eat and drink unrestrictedly
- A person who is passionate and ignorant cannot direct his activities on the right path. Only the man in the quality of goodness can help to a certain extent
- A person, when received at home, should be treated as a relative, so what to speak of a family member like Vidura, who was a well-wisher for all the members of the family. Thus Yudhisthira Maharaja began to speak in the presence of all the other members
- A prominent figure in the history of the Mahabharata, Vidura was conceived by Vyasadeva in the womb of the maidservant of Ambika, mother of Maharaja Pandu. He is the incarnation of Yamaraja. Being cursed by Manduka Muni, he was to become a sudra
- A pure devotee like Vidura always feels the presence of the Lord everywhere. He sees everything in the potency of the Lord and the Lord in everything
- A pure devotee of the Lord can give us direction towards the other end of nescience
- A pure devotee of the Lord does not live on any planet of the material sky, nor does he feel any contact with material elements
- A rich man gets his son born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but the child who came as the rich man's son deserved such a place, and he is placed there by the will of the Lord
- A sadhu like Vidura is meant to awaken such blind persons and help them go back to Godhead, where life is eternal. Once going there, no one wants to come back to this material world of miseries
- A sadhu should never flatter kings or rich men to live comfortably at their cost. A sadhu is to speak to the householders about the naked truth of life so that they may come to their senses about the precarious life in material existence
- A sannyasi is considered to be a dead man civilly, and therefore the wife becomes a civil widow without connection with her former husband
- A slight change in the course of God-made law can bring about a massive danger to be faced by the lawbreaker
- A systematic law of subsistence in the struggle for existence is there by the supreme will, and there is no escape for anyone by any amount of planning
- Above the modes of nature is eternal time, which is called kala because it changes the shape of everything in the material world
- According to Indian moral codes, even an enemy received at home should be so well received that he will not feel any fearful situation. An enemy is always afraid of his enemy, but this should not be so when he is received at home by his enemy
- According to Niti-sastra (civic laws) one should not speak an unpalatable truth to cause distress to others. Distress comes upon us in its own way by the laws of nature, so one should not aggravate it by propaganda
- According to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, anyone who is conversant in the transcendental knowledge, or the science of Godhead, be he a brahmana or a sudra, a householder or a sannyasi, is eligible to become a spiritual master
- After complete suspension of the material modes of nature, one is admitted to the spiritual sphere, and action dictated by the spiritual modes is called devotional service, or bhakti. Bhakti is nirguna attained by direct contact with the Absolute
- After finishing his (Vidura's) rest, he was offered a comfortable place to sit, and then the King began to talk about all happenings, both family and otherwise. That is the proper way to receive a beloved friend, or even an enemy
- After setting the fire, the Kauravas were so certain of the death of the Pandavas that Dhrtarastra performed the last rites of death with great cheerfulness
- After that, when she (Prtha) actually selected her own husband, she preferred Pandu to be her husband. Maharaja Pandu later wanted to retire from family life and adopt the renounced order of life
- After the battle, Maharaja Yudhisthira was unhappy over such mass killings. Practically there was none to continue the Kuru dynasty after them, the Pandavas
- After the settlement of all disturbing conditions and reestablishment of the peaceful order of the state, and after seeing the surviving child, Pariksit, well satisfied, Maharaja Yudhisthira felt some relief as a human being
- All his (Dhrtarastra's) senses were being engaged in the service of the Lord. This process directly helps the devotee to get freedom from the contaminations of the three material modes of nature
- All these different activities of Vidura within the palace politics made him well-known as partial to the Pandavas
- Although Dhrtarastra was equally careful for the minor children of Maharaja Pandu, he was one of the intriguing parties who wanted to wash away the descendants of Pandu and replace them by raising his own sons to become the rulers of the kingdom
- Although qualitatively one with the Lord, the living being, due to contamination of the material world, is pervertedly manifested, he experiences so-called happiness and distress in the material world
- Although the law states that a human being must subsist on another living being, there is the law of good sense also, for the human being is meant to obey the laws of the scriptures. This is impossible for other animals
- Although Vidura did not inherit the property of his father (the brother of Bhismadeva), still he was given sufficient state property by Dhrtarastra, the elder brother of Vidura
- Among all such pure devotees of the Lord, Devarsi Narada is the chief, and therefore he has been described herein (SB 1.13.40) as the greatest of all philosopher devotees
- An ascetic is never disturbed by all kinds of sufferings, and that makes him strong and determined on the path of spiritual progress
- An offense at the feet of a Vaisnava is more dangerous than an offense at the lotus feet of the Lord. Vidura was certainly very liberal to bestow mercy upon his brother Dhrtarastra, whose past life was very materialistic
- Any comfort of life or any material happiness which does not warrant an eternal life is but illusion for the eternal living being
- As a matter of inquisitiveness, she (Prtha) at once called for the sun-god, who desired couplement with her, but she declined. But the sun-god assured her immunity from virgin adulteration, and so she agreed to his proposal
- As a pious man, Maharaja Yudhisthira took into account all his unavoidable misdeeds, and he never thought of the misdeeds of his uncle and company
- As a result of this combination (between Hidimba and Bhima), Ghatotkaca was born, and he fought very valiantly with his father against the Kauravas
- As a result of this couplement, she (Prtha) became pregnant, and Karna was born by her. By the grace of the sun, she again turned into a virgin girl, but being afraid of her parents, she quitted the newly born child, Karna
- As a woman Gandhari could have remained at home or at her father's house, but as a chaste and gentle lady she followed her husband (to the Himalayas) without consideration
- At a particular moment when the child has to be removed from that place, he is also carried by the will of the Supreme, even if the child or the father does not wish to be separated from the happy relation
B
- Because he (Dhrtarastra) was blind from birth, he was disqualified from his rightful claim (the throne of Hastinapura). But he could not forget the bereavement, and his disappointment was somewhat compensated after the death of Pandu, his younger brother
- Because of his (Narada Muni's) association with pure devotees, he was elevated to the position of an eternal spaceman and thus had freedom of movement
- Because the living being is eternal, he can be happy only in the eternal abode of the kingdom of God (paravyoma), from which no one returns to this region of repeated birth and death, disease and old age
- Because the remark (Vidura's mother being a sudrani) was an actual fact, it was unpalatable talk to Vidura, and it was accepted as a direct insult. He therefore decided to quit his paternal house and prepare for the renounced order of life
- Because there is no such thing (a remedy to death) in the material world, death is identical with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as it is said by the Lord Himself in the Bhagavad-gita
- Before ordering Vidura informed Dhrtarastra that there was no remedial measure by anyone or from any source in this material world
- Before the Battle of Kuruksetra Dhrtarastra's policy was peaceful annihilation of his nephews and he ordered Purocana to build a house at Varanavata and when the building was finished Dhrtarastra desired that his brother's family live there for some time
- Beginning from Brahmaji, the leader of this universe, down to the insignificant ant, all are abiding by the order of the Supreme Lord. Thus the constitutional position of the living being is subordination under the control of the Lord
- Being a mahajana, it is the duty of Yamaraja to preach the cult of devotion to the people of the world, as Narada, Brahma, and other mahajanas do. But Yamaraja is always busy in his plutonic kingdom punishing the doers of sinful acts
- Being freed from all obligations of family, society, country, etc. (one who has spoiled his life without cultural activities) give up the body at some unknown destination so that others may not know where and how he has met his death
- Bona fide spiritual masters who look unto the Supreme Lord to cooperate with Him are actually qualitatively one with the Lord, and the forgetful ones are perverted reflections only
- Both Maharaja Yudhisthira and Arjuna were unhappy from the beginning of the Battle of Kuruksetra
- Brahma, Siva, Indra, Candra, Maharaja Yudhisthira or, in modern history, Napoleon, Akbar, Alexander, Gandhi, Shubhash & Nehru all are servants of the Lord, and they are placed in and removed from their respective positions by the supreme will of the Lord
- By carrying out the orders of the Lord, the conditioned living beings gradually become free from the clutches of material existence. The factual position of the living being is that he is the eternal servitor of the Supreme Lord
- By his (Drupada) first offering, Dhrstadyumna was born, and by the second offering, Draupadi was born. She is the sister of Dhrstadyumna, and she is also named Pancali. The five Pandavas married her as a common wife, and each of them begot a son in her
- By His order only, one should become a spiritual master and cooperate with the Lord. One should not become a spiritual master for one's personal benefit, for some material gain or as an avenue of business or occupation for earning livelihood
- By material association and education, we learn simply to concentrate on flimsy things, but yoga is the process of forgetting them altogether
- By the grace of his younger brother Vidura, Dhrtarastra was enlightened and could see his grossly illusory engagements, and by such enlightenment he was able to leave home for spiritual realization
- By the yogic process, when his pure identity is realized in self-realization, one has to revert to the original position by amalgamating the five gross elements and the subtle elements, mind and intelligence, into the mahat-tattva again
- By their (Vyasadeva, Narada, Sukadeva Goswami and Maharaja Pariksit) actions the pure devotees of the Lord can render any place into a place of pilgrimage, and the holy places are worth the name only on their account
C
- Confidential devotees of the Lord are very much dear to Him because they travel everywhere to preach His glories in different capacities & try their utmost to convert the nondevotees into devotees in order to bring them to the platform of sanity
- Cruel death cares for no one, be he Dhrtarastra or even Maharaja Yudhisthira; therefore spiritual instruction, as was given to old Dhrtarastra, was equally applicable to younger Maharaja Yudhisthira
D
- Death cannot be checked by anyone or from any source within this material world
- Despite all her (Gandhari's) good qualities, she had the natural frailties of a woman, and she was envious of Kunti when the latter gave birth to a male child. Both the queens were pregnant, but Kunti first gave birth to a male child
- Despite his life of failure, he (Dhrtarastra) achieved the greatest of all success in self-realization by the forceful instructions of a pure devotee of the Lord (Vidura), who is the typical emblem of a sadhu
- Devarsi Narada is described herein (SB 1.13.38) as bhagavan due to his being the most confidential devotee of the Lord
- Devarsi Narada used to visit the palace of Maharaja Yudhisthira because the Pandavas were all pure devotees of the Lord, and the Devarsi was always ready to give them good counsel whenever needed
- Dhira means one who is not disturbed, even when there is sufficient provocation. One cannot give up a comfortable family life due to his affectionate relation with wife and children
- Dhrtarastra and Vidura, followed by Gandhari, did not disclose their determination to Sanjaya, although he was constantly with Dhrtarastra as his personal assistant
- Dhrtarastra had attained, by the yogic process, the stage of negation of all sorts of material reaction
- Dhrtarastra had suffered the effects of his own misdeeds by the will of the Lord, but Maharaja Yudhisthira was thinking only of his own unavoidable misdeeds. That is the nature of a good man and devotee of the Lord
- Dhrtarastra is a typical example of an attached old man in household life
- Dhrtarastra is addressed herein (SB 1.13.25) as a krpana because without any estimation of his material body he wants to live at any cost. Vidura is trying to open his eyes to see that he cannot live more than his term and that he must prepare for death
- Dhrtarastra lost all his state and descendants in the fight with Maharaja Yudhisthira, and still, due to his sense of helplessness, he did not feel ashamed to accept the charity and hospitality of Maharaja Yudhisthira
- Dhrtarastra was advised by Vidura at least to become a dhira in the beginning if it were impossible for him to become a sannyasi or a narottama
- Dhrtarastra was all along engaged in improving family affairs by raising the standard of living of his sons or by usurping the property of the Pandavas for the sake of his own sons
- Dhrtarastra was lucky enough to have a brother whose very association was a source of liberation for his frustrated life
- Dhrtarastra, due to his wrong conception of life, had already spoiled eighty percent of his achieved energy, so it behooved him to utilize the remaining days of his miserly life for the ultimate good
- Disruptions take place not only in human society but also among animals, birds or other living beings, including the demigods in the higher planets
- Draupadi: The most chaste daughter of Maharaja Drupada and partly an incarnation of goddess Saci, the wife of Indra. Maharaja Drupada performed a great sacrifice under the superintendence of the sage Yaja
- Drinking water only, without solid food, is also considered fasting. This is necessary for advancement of spiritual knowledge. A foolish man wants to be a cheap yogi without observing the regulative principles
- Due to Pandu's death at an early age his minor children & widow were the object of special care by all the elderly members of the family especially Bhismadeva and Mahatma Vidura. He was more or less partial to the Pandavas due to their political position
- Due to the growth of the asuras, the mass of people who are generally devoted to the Lord by nature and the pure devotees of the Lord, including the demigods in higher planets, pray to the Lord for relief
- During the forest life one demon girl, Hidimba, wanted Bhima as her husband. Bhima refused, but when the girl approached Kunti and Yudhisthira, they ordered Bhima to accept her proposal and give her a son
- During the fratricidal war of Kuruksetra, Vidura repeatedly implored his elder brother to do justice to the sons of Pandu, but Duryodhana did not like such interference by his uncle, and thus he practically insulted Vidura
- During the mourning period all the members of the palace became overwhelmed with lamentation, but Vidura did not become so, because of his knowledge that the Pandavas were alive somewhere
- During the political upsurge in India and its division into Pakistan and Hindustan, so many rich and influential Indians had to surrender life, property and honor due to the influence of time
E
- Either in his conditional material existence or in his liberated position of full knowledge and eternity, the living entity is eternally under the control of the Supreme Lord
- Either remaining at home or leaving home, the real qualification of a pure devotee is to become rapt in the thought of Krsna favorably, i.e., knowing well that Lord Krsna is the Absolute Personality of Godhead
- Even a second passed away imperceptibly cannot be replaced, even in exchange for thousands of golden coins amassed by hard labor
- Even if we are able to do something temporarily beneficial, time will see that the good project is frustrated in course of time
- Even in our daily life, so many things come and go in which we have no hand, but we have to suffer or tolerate them without remedial measure. That is the result of time
- Even in the ordinary moral codes (maintained by Canakya Pandita, the great politician and moralist) there is no harm in taking lessons from a person who may be by birth less than a sudra. This is one part of the answer
- Even Narada used to visit the palace of Maharaja Yudhisthira and what to speak of other celestial demigods. It is only the spiritual culture of the people concerned that makes interplanetary travel possible, even in the present body
- Even the happiness obtained on the planet Brahmaloka is also temporary and illusory
- Even the highest mode, the material mode of goodness, is also a cause of material bondage, and what to speak of the other qualities, namely passion and ignorance
- Even those who are accustomed to eat animals can offer foodstuff, not to the Lord directly, but to an agent of the Lord, under certain conditions of religious rites
- Even though they (Yudhistira and Arjuna) were unwilling to kill their own men in the fight, it had to be done as a matter of duty, for it was planned by the supreme will of Lord Sri Krsna
- Every living being, either in this material world or in the spiritual world, is under the control of the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead
- Every living being, whether a man or an animal or a bird, thinks that he is free by himself, but actually no one is free from the severe laws of the Lord. The laws of the Lord are severe because they cannot be disobeyed in any circumstance
- Every man is imperfect by constitution under conditions of material existence, and there is not the least possibility that even the most materially advanced man can enact perfect legislation
- Every second of human life is meant for making an ultimate solution to the problems of life, i.e. repetition of birth and death and revolving in the cycle of 8,400,000 different species of life
- Every sense is always busy in searching for its food, and thus the conditioned soul is assaulted from all sides and has no chance to become steady in any pursuit
- Everyone in the royal palace, including the King (Yudhisthira) and his brothers and mother, was raptly attending the lectures. But it was known to Vidura that his instructions were especially meant for Dhrtarastra, who was too materialistic
- Everyone is trying to become an imitation God; there is keen competition amongst such imitation gods, and such competitors are generally known as asuras
- Everything failed by the will of the Lord, and at the last stage, even after losing everything, men and money, he (Dhrtarastra) wanted to remain as king, being the eldest uncle of Maharaja Yudhisthira
- Exploitation of the weaker living being by the stronger is the natural law of existence; there is always an attempt to devour the weak in different kingdoms of living beings
F
- Factually the yoga system is the process of learning to forget what we have acquired throughout the struggle for existence
- Foolish living beings are attracted by the temporary cloud, but intelligent men are more concerned with the eternal sky with all its variegatedness
- Foolish men want to make a permanent settlement of the perishable body and think that their estate, children, society, country, etc., will give them protection
- Foolish persons forget this problem. They do not know at all how to solve the problems of life, but become engrossed in temporary family affairs
- For a compassionate soul like Vidura, especially in his dealings with the beloved Pandavas, it was almost impossible to disclose an unpalatable piece of news like the annihilation of the Yadu dynasty. Therefore he purposely refrained from it
- From the mahat-tattva his (the living being's) false identity with the material world, intelligence, mind and senses is developed. This covers his pure spiritual identity
- From within He (God) corrects the desiring living beings as localized Paramatma, and from without He corrects by His manifestations, the spiritual master and the revealed scriptures
- Fruits, leaves and milk in different varieties can be offered to the Lord, and after the Lord accepts the foodstuff, the devotee can partake of the prasada, by which all suffering in the struggle for existence will be gradually mitigated
G
- Gandhari became angry and gave a blow to her own abdomen. She gave birth to a lump of flesh only, but since she was a devotee of Vyasadeva, by his instruction the lump was divided into one hundred parts and each gradually developed to become a male child
- Gandhari was an ideal chaste lady, a life companion of her husband, and therefore when she saw her husband burning in the fire of mystic yoga along with his cottage of leaves, she despaired
- Gandhari: The ideal chaste lady in the history of the world. She was the daughter of Maharaja Subala, the King of Gandhara (now Kandahar in Kabul), and in her maiden state she worshiped Lord Siva
- Generally the law of karma is that one is awarded the result of one's own actions, but in special cases, by the will of the Lord, such resultant actions are changed also. But this change can be affected by the will of the Lord only, and no other
- Getting freed from the clutches of the mahat-tattva, he has to merge in the existence of the Supersoul
- Gradually (with mechanical ways of rising to the spiritual platform) becoming free from visaya, or material objectives. Material existence means to be absorbed in the material objective, which is simply illusory
H
- He (Caitanya Mahaprabhu) said that even by a moments association with a pure devotee, one can achieve all perfection. We are not ashamed to admit that this fact was experienced in our practical life
- He (Dhrtarastra) did everything in his power to achieve so-called success in his planned projects, but he was frustrated from the beginning to the end so far as his material activities were concerned
- He (Dhrtarastra) did not ask her (Gandhari) to follow him because he was at that time fully determined, like a great warrior who faces all kinds of dangers in the battlefield
- He (Dhrtarastra) had a good younger brother, Vidura, and by his instruction he left to achieve salvation by closing all accounts in the material world
- He (Dhrtarastra) had become a pauper in the true sense, yet he wanted to live comfortably in the house of the Pandavas, of whom Bhima especially is mentioned because personally he killed two prominent sons of Dhrtarastra, namely Duryodhana and Duhsasana
- He (Dhrtarastra) had lost all men and money, and now he was living at the mercy of his nephew, whom he had put into troubles of various types. And despite all these reverses, he thought that he would prolong his life more and more
- He (Dhrtarastra) was advised to leave home before Kali-yuga approached because the atmosphere which was created by Vidura, his valuable instructions on the facts of life, would fade away due to the influence of the age which was fast approaching
- He (Dhrtarastra) was no longer attracted to so-called wife or relatives, and he decided to start alone, but as a chaste lady Gandhari decided to follow her husband till the last moment
- He (Dhrtarastra) was warned of his precarious conditions more and more by the following words
- He (God as kala) is not at all dangerous, but He is the transcendental form of eternity, knowledge and bliss. For the devotees His factual form is disclosed, and for the nondevotees He appears like kala-rupa, which is causal form
- He (God) rewards the reactions of our actions by placing us in some particular place
- He (Maharaja Yudhisthira) had very little attraction for material happiness, which is always illusory and temporary
- He (Maharaja Yudhisthira) thought himself ungrateful because when the Pandavas were fatherless, Maharaja Dhrtarastra had given them all royal facilities to live, and in return he had killed all Dhrtarastra's sons in the Battle of Kuruksetra
- He (Sanjaya) studied the situation in his own way because he did not know that the inner vision of Dhrtarastra has been awakened by Vidura and that he had left home in enthusiastic cheerfulness for a better life after departure from the dark well of home
- He (Sanjaya) was fully compassionate toward Dhrtarastra because in the game of the Battle of Kuruksetra, King Dhrtarastra had lost everything, men and money, and at last the King and the Queen had to leave home in utter frustration
- He (the conditioned soul) then searches after the Supreme Truth by the empiric philosophic speculative method and intellectual feats
- He (the pure devotee of God) is always in the spiritual sky, which he attains by being transcendental to the sevenfold material covering by the effect of his devotional service
- He (Vidura) accepted out of his own mercy what was offered to him by Maharaja Yudhisthira, but the purpose of living in the palace was to deliver his elder brother, Dhrtarastra, who was too much materially attached
- He (Vidura) also gave indications of fire and said that fire cannot extinguish the soul but can annihilate the material body. But one who protects the soul can live
- He (Vidura) always criticized his elder brother for his policy of encouragement to his sons, and at the same time he was always alert in giving special protection to the Pandavas
- He (Vidura) did not ask Maharaja Yudhisthira in that way (get out of the false position of King) because he knew that a king like Maharaja Yudhisthira is aware of all the fearful situations of this flimsy world and would take care of himself
- He (Vidura) hinted that the party of the Pandavas was being sent to Varanavata to be killed, and thus he (Vidura) warned Yudhisthira to be very careful in their new residential palace
- He (Vidura) was always partial to the Pandavas, just as a bird protects its eggs by its wing
- He (Vidura) was equally affectionate to both the camps of nephews in the sense that he always chastised Duryodhana for his intriguing policy against his cousins
- He (Vidura) was practically insulted by Duryodhana's calling him a son of a sudrani, although it was not out of place to talk loosely in the case of one's grandmother
- He (Vidura) was the incarnation of Yamaraja, one of the twelve mahajanas, on the level with such exalted personalities as Brahma, Narada, Siva, Kapila, Bhisma, Prahlada, etc
- He (Vidura) was thoroughly educated by him (Maitreya Rsi) in transcendental knowledge, he was quite competent to occupy the post of an acarya, or spiritual preceptor
- He (Vidura) was very careful about the protection of the Pandavas and their widow mother. He was, so to speak, partial to the Pandavas, preferring them to the sons of Dhrtarastra, although both of them were equally affectionate in his ordinary eyes
- He (Yamaraja) wanted to preach the glories of the Lord, and therefore by the will of the Lord he was cursed by Manduka Muni to come into the world in the incarnation of Vidura and work very hard as a great devotee
- Her (Gandhari's) ambition to become the mother of one hundred sons was fulfilled, and she began to nourish all the children according to her exalted position
- Her (Gandhari's) mourning over the death of Duryodhana and Duhsasana before Lord Krsna was very pitiful and Lord Krsna pacified her by transcendental messages
- Her (Kunti) prayers for the Lord after the Battle of Kuruksetra, when Lord Krsna was going back home, are excellently explained. Later she went to the forest with Gandhari for severe penance
- Here is another practical example by the action of Vidura's association with Dhrtarastra
- Hiranyakasipu asked Brahma to award him the blessings of immortality, but Brahma said that he himself was subject to death, even in the topmost planet, so how could he award him the benediction of immortality?
- Hiranyakasipu wanted to be immortal and underwent a severe type of penance by which the whole universe trembled, and Brahma himself approached him to dissuade Hiranyakasipu from such a severe type of penance
- His (Dhrtarastra's) brother Pandu died also. Then in the Battlefield of Kuruksetra his one hundred sons and his grandsons all died, along with all other well-wishers like Bhismadeva, Dronacarya, Karna and many other kings and friends
- His (Dhrtarastra's) father, Vicitravirya, died long ago, when he and his younger brothers were all little children, and it was due to the care and kindness of Bhismadeva that they were properly brought up
- His (the pure devotee's) so-called material body does not exist, being surcharged with the spiritual current of the Lord's identical interest, and thus he is permanently freed from all contaminations of the sum total of the mahat-tattva
- His younger brother left behind him some minor children, and Dhrtarastra became the natural guardian of them, but at heart he wanted to become the factual king and hand the kingdom over to his own sons, headed by Duryodhana
- House, country, family, society, children, property, & business are some of the material coverings of the spirit, atma, & the yoga system helps one to become free from all these illusory thoughts and gradually turn towards the Absolute Person, Paramatma
I
- I am now happy; I have everything in order; my bank balance is quite enough; I can now give my children enough estate; I am now successful; the poor beggar sannyasis depend on God, but they come to beg from me; therefore I am more than the Supreme God
- If anyone visits a holy place, he must search out the pure devotees residing in such holy places, take lessons from them, try to apply such instructions in practical life and gradually prepare oneself for the ultimate salvation, going back to Godhead
- If he (the conditioned soul) does not find the ultimate goal, he again goes down to material activities and engages himself in various philanthropic and altruistic works, which all fail to give him satisfaction
- If man does not allow the animals peaceful coexistence, how can he expect peaceful existence in human society?
- If the Lord is able to change the reactions of one's past deeds, then certainly He is not Himself bound by any action or reaction of His own deeds. He is perfect and transcendental to all laws
- Illusion cannot work on one who is awake in the devotional service of the Lord
- In a later age, this sati rite became an obnoxious criminal affair because the ceremony was forced upon even an unwilling woman
- In his (the living being's) liberated state he renders service to the Lord in transcendental love and thus enjoys a life of full freedom, even sometimes on an equal level with the Lord or sometimes more than the Lord
- In other words, he (the living beign) has to realize that qualitatively he is nondifferent from the Supersoul, and he transcends the material sky by his pure identical intelligence and thus becomes engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord
- In other words, the human body is especially meant for cultivating knowledge of devotional service to the Lord, without which life becomes full of anxieties and miserable conditions
- In our daily experience we find so many transformations of matter from one form to another, but we do not lament such changing features
- In the absence of consciousness, the limbs of the body remain inactive. But when consciousness returns, the limbs and senses become active, and existence itself becomes delightful
- In the conditioned material world, every living being wants to be the Lord of other living beings, and thus by the illusion of maya this mentality of lording it over becomes a cause of further extension of conditional life
- In the holy places of India, like Vrndavana, Hardwar, Jagannatha Puri, and Prayaga, there are many great devotees, and there are still free kitchen houses for persons who desire to advance spiritually
- In the material world the living being is still more conditioned, until he surrenders unto the Lord by reviving his original state of eternal servitorship. That is the last instruction of the Bhagavad-gita and all other recognized scriptures of the world
- In their forest life they lived with a brahmana family that was in trouble because of one Bakasura demon, and Kunti ordered Bhima to kill the Bakasura to protect the brahmana family against troubles created by the demon
- In this fallen age it is not possible for any lady to follow the sati rite as chastely as it was done by Gandhari and others in past ages
- Injunctions of the scriptures are meant not to encourage the eaters of animals, but to restrict them by regulated principles
- Instead of becoming free from the clutches of maya, or illusion, foolish human beings become bound up by different nomenclatures, being designated as brahmanas, ksatriyas, vaisyas, sudras, Hindus, Mohammedans, Indians, Europeans, Americans, Chinese
- Instructions for the renounced order of life were imparted to Dhrtarastra by Vidura, and Gandhari was by the side of her husband
- It is a fact that the material world is a great illusion because everything appears to be a tangible reality but at the next moment evaporates like the dashing foam of the sea or a cloud in the sky
- It is admitted by all schools of philosophy, that the living being is eternal and that the covering body of the five material elements is perishable and temporary
- It is assured in the Bhagavad-gita (BG 9.30-31) that the Lord saves a pure devotee who has surrendered unto Him without reservation from all sorts of reactions of sins, and there is no doubt about this
- It is better to take the right path, even at the risk of death. Human life is meant for finishing all kinds of miseries of material existence, and life should be so regulated that one can achieve the desired goal
- It is stated in Bhagavad-gita (BG 7.28) that a person who is completely relieved of all taints of sinful acts can alone depend on the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna, the Personality of Godhead
- It was an intrigue of Dhrtarastra that the Pandavas might die all together with their mother. And by his (Vidura's) warning the Pandavas escaped through a tunnel underneath the earth so that their escape was also unknown to Dhrtarastra
K
- Kamsa and Sisupala are not on the same level as pure devotees like Vidura, the Pandavas and the Yadavas
- Kamsa, Jarasandha, Sisupala and other demons like them were also always rapt in the thought of Lord Krsna, but they were absorbed in a different way, namely unfavorably, or thinking Him to be a powerful man only
- King Yudhisthira was expert in reception also, even in the case of his family members
- Kunti could not follow such indirect conversations between Maharaja Yudhisthira and Vidura
- Kunti did not accept this proposal at first, but when vivid examples were set by Pandu she agreed. Thus by dint of the mantra awarded by Durvasa Muni she called for Dharmaraja, and thus Yudhisthira was born
- Kunti refused to allow her husband to adopt such life (renounced order of life), but at last Maharaja Pandu gave her permission to become a mother of sons by calling some other suitable personalities
- Kuntidevi never forgot her first child, Karna, and after Karna's death in the Battle of Kuruksetra she lamented and admitted before her other sons that Karna was her eldest son prior to her marriage with Maharaja Pandu
L
- Laksmiji Sitadevi was also a daughter of a great king, but she followed her husband, Lord Ramacandra, into the forest
- Laws of the Supreme are generally known as the codes of religion, under different conditions, but the principle of religion everywhere is one and the same, namely, obey the orders of the Supreme God, the codes of religion
- Like Dhrtarastra, the materialistic person may take lessons from a sadhu like Vidura and thus be cleansed of the effects of modern life
- Like Vidura, an inquisitive conditioned soul must approach a bona fide spiritual master like Maitreya and by intelligent inquiries must try to know everything about 1) karma (fruitive activities), jnana (philosophical research for the Supreme Truth)
- Like Vidura, an inquisitive conditioned soul must approach a bona fide spiritual master like Maitreya and by intelligent inquiries must try to know everything about 2) yoga (the linking process of spiritual realization)
- Lord Siva is generally worshiped by Hindu maidens to get a good husband. Gandhari satisfied Lord Siva, and by his benediction to obtain one hundred sons, she was betrothed to Dhrtarastra, despite his being blind forever
- Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the great preacher of the principles of Srimad-Bhagavatam, has stressed the importance of association with sadhus, pure devotees of the Lord
- Lord Sri Krsna descended personally to vanquish asuras like Kamsa, Jarasandha and Sisupala, and during the reign of Maharaja Yudhisthira almost all these asuras were killed by the Lord
M
- Mahamuni Vyasadeva heard from Narada, and then he chanted in writing; Sukadeva Gosvami studied from his father, and he described it to Pariksit; that is the way of Srimad-Bhagavatam
- Maharaja Dhrtarastra accepted the order of vanaprastha, and at this stage the wife is allowed to remain as a voluntary servitor, but in the sannyasa stage no wife can stay with her former husband
- Maharaja Dhrtarastra did not deny his faithful wife (Gandhari), and she followed her husband at her own risk
- Maharaja Dhrtarastra was advised to follow the dhiras because at that stage it was difficult for him to become a narottama
- Maharaja Dhrtarastra was placed in that position according to his past deeds; he had already suffered or enjoyed the benefits accrued to him in the past, but due to his good luck
- Maharaja Dhrtarastra was tightly bound in a network of material affinities related to politics, economy and family attachment
- Maharaja Dhrtarastra was to attain success in those preliminary actions because he was seated in a sanctified place and was concentrating upon one objective, namely the Supreme Personality of Godhead (Hari)
- Maharaja Pandu died at an early age, for which Kunti was so aggrieved that she fainted
- Maharaja Yudhisthira begot a son named Pratibhit, Bhimasena begot a son named Sutasoma, Arjuna begot Srutakirti, Nakula begot Satanika, and Sahadeva begot Srutakarma
- Maharaja Yudhisthira could not find in the palace his two uncles, namely Dhrtarastra and Vidura, along with Gandhari, the daughter of King Subala. He was anxious to see them and therefore asked Sanjaya, the private secretary of Dhrtarastra
- Maharaja Yudhisthira has referred to the past history of Vidura before his going away from home for a prolonged pilgrim's journey
- Maharaja Yudhisthira is advised by Narada not to worry about his uncles' suffering for want of food, for they could live on vegetables available in the jungles as prasada of the Supreme Lord and thus realize the path of salvation
- Maharaja Yudhisthira received Vidura in the manner of reception offered to the demigods
- Maharaja Yudhisthira reminded him (Vidura) that he was equally kind and partial to his grown-up nephews, even after the Battle of Kuruksetra, a great family disaster
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was a pious king, and he could see Narada Muni occasionally; anyone who desires to see Narada Muni must first be pious and follow in the footsteps of Narada Muni
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was advised by Narada not to disturb his uncle (Dhrtarastra) by attempting to bring him back home. He was now beyond the attraction of anything material
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was also always rapt in the thought of Lord Krsna and His associates at Dvaraka. Otherwise he could not have asked all about them from Vidura
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was always conscious of the great plight of his uncle Dhrtarastra and aunt Gandhari, and therefore he took all possible care of them in their old age and aggrieved conditions
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was fixed in the service of the Lord Mukunda (the Lord, who can award salvation), and he had no attraction even for such comforts of life as are available in the kingdom of heaven
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was inquisitive to learn whether Vidura maintained himself by the mercy of the free kitchen houses - chatras
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was on the same level of devotion as Vidura, although engaged in the state affairs of the kingdom of the world
- Maharaja Yudhisthira was the most pious king because he personally practiced daily the pious duties for the householders
- Maharaja Yudhisthira, along with his noble brothers, were examples for others in receiving a pure devotee of the Lord like Narada, who had no other business save and except singing the glories of the Lord along with his vina, a musical stringed instrument
- Maharaja Yudhisthira, as a good soul and devotee of the Lord, was always conscious of the great loss of his aunt (Gandhari) and her sufferings as an ascetic
- Maharaja Yudhisthira, as a matter of duty, maintained Dhrtarastra in royal honor, and Dhrtarastra was happily passing away his numbered days in the illusion of being a king or the royal uncle of King Yudhisthira
- Mahatma Vidura could follow this intrigue of Dhrtarastra and company, and therefore, even though he was a faithful servitor of his eldest brother, Dhrtarastra, he did not like his political ambition for the sake of his own sons
- Mahatma Vidura had already adopted the renounced order of life, and therefore he did not return to his paternal palace to enjoy some material comforts
- Mahatma Vidura is one such great devotee of the Lord, and we should all try to follow in his lotus footsteps for self-realization
- Man-made laws may be evaded by cunning outlaws, but in the codes of the supreme lawmaker there is not the slightest possibility of neglecting the laws
- Many poets have written verses lamenting the influence of time. Many devastations have taken place over the universes due to the influence of time, and no one could check them by any means
- Materialistic devotees may be blessed by the Lord with material benefits, but they cannot reach the stage of the first-class human being
- Mechanical ways of rising to the spiritual platform prescribe some regulative principles of taking bath daily three times, fasting as far as possible, sitting and concentrating the mind on spiritual matters
- Modern householders are practiced to different modes of life, namely to rise late and then take bed tea without any sort of cleanliness and without any purificatory practices as mentioned above
- Modern so-called yogis and yoga systems manifest some magical feats, and ignorant persons are attracted by such false things, or they accept the yoga system as a cheap healing process for diseases of the gross body
- Most persons are passionate and ignorant, and therefore their plans and projects can hardly do any good to others
N
- Narada is a spaceman who can travel unrestrictedly, not only within the material universes but also in the spiritual universes
- Narada Muni can approach any planet in unlimited space within no time. We have already discussed his previous life as the son of a maidservant
- Narada Muni indicated that his (Dhrtarastra's) body by itself would burn to ashes. The perfection of the yoga system is attained by such mystic power
- Narada Muni's prophecy prohibited Yudhisthira Maharaja from going to the place where his uncle was staying because even after quitting the body by his own mystic power, Dhrtarastra would not be in need of any funeral ceremony
- Narada, like Vidura, did not disclose the imminent annihilation of the Yadu dynasty, but indirectly gave a hint to the King and his brothers to wait till the incident happened and the Lord departed
- Narottama dasa Thakura, a great devotee and acarya of the Gaudiya Vaisnava sect, has sung: "My Lord, I have simply wasted my life. Having obtained the human body, I have neglected to worship Your Lordship, and therefore I have willingly drunk poison
- Neither fruitive activities nor dry philosophical speculation can give one satisfaction because by nature a living being is the eternal servitor of the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna, and all the Vedic literatures give him direction towards that ultimate end
- Nirguna means without reaction. The spiritual mode and its effect are identical; therefore the spiritual quality is distinguished from its material counterpart by the word nirguna
- No friend, no children, no father, no brother, no state and no one else can protect a person who is not protected by the Lord. One should, therefore, seek the protection of the Supreme Lord, for the human form of life is meant for seeking that protection
- No one is strong enough to protect himself from the onslaught of a stronger, and by the will of the Lord there are systematic categories of the weak, the stronger and the strongest
- None of them is independent. Even though such men or leaders (Gandhi, Alexander, Nehru) rebel so as not to recognize the supremacy of the Lord, they are put under still more rigorous laws of the material world by different miseries
- Nor should a person who may be a spiritual master for others pose to be so if he is unable to engage his disciple ultimately in the transcendental loving service of Lord Sri Krsna
- Not knowing that eternal time is passing away imperceptibly and that their measured duration of life is diminishing every second, without any solution to the big problem, namely repetition of birth and death, disease and old age. This is called illusion
- Not only are the asuras envious of the Lord in even denying the existence of the Lord, but they are also envious of all other living beings
- Now He (Krsna) was awaiting the annihilation of His own dynasty, called the Yadu-vamsa, who appeared by His will in this world. He wanted to take them away before His own departure to His eternal abode
O
- Old age is the notice of the arrival of death served by cruel time, and no one can refuse to accept either summon calls or the supreme judgment of eternal time
- On the other hand, there is no such imperfection in the laws of God. If leaders are educated in the laws of God, there is no necessity of a makeshift legislative council of aimless men
- On the part of Maharaja Yudhisthira, it was quite in order to maintain his uncle in a befitting manner but acceptance of such magnanimous hospitality by Dhrtarastra was not at all desirable. He accepted it because he thought that there was no alternative
- One can compensate for a life of frustration by becoming a dhira, or leaving home for good without communicating with relatives, and Vidura advised his eldest brother to adopt this way without delay because very quickly the age of Kali was approaching
- One has to execute his duty faithfully, depending for the result on the supreme authority
- One may live in the darkest jungle alone out of home, but a steadfast devotee knows very well that he is not alone. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is with him, and He can protect His sincere devotee in any awkward circumstance
- One must be very faithful, learned and renounced, otherwise one cannot be a pure devotee
- One of which (the threefold miseries) is explained here in this verse (SB 1.13.47): the weak are the subsistence of the strong
- One should also find representatives of Vidura who have no desire in life save and except to serve the Personality of Godhead
- One should look unto the Lord; one should not be disturbed by the so-called manifestations of happiness or distress, but he should try to cooperate with the Lord in His outward activities for correcting the fallen souls
- One should practice devotional service at home, hearing & chanting the holy name, quality, form, pastimes, entourage etc. in association with pure devotees & this practice will help one awaken God consciousness in proportion to one's sincerity of purpose
- One should try to follow in the footsteps of Narada Muni and not make a futile effort to reach other planets by mechanical means
- One who desires material benefit by such devotional activities can never depend on the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although He sits in everyone's heart. Nor does the Lord give any direction to persons who worship Him for material gain
- One who has conquered these two base mentalities and has raised himself to the platform of goodness, which is full of knowledge and morality, cannot also control the senses, namely the eyes, the tongue, the nose, the ear and touch
- One who has spoiled his life without such cultural activities is advised to leave home without knowledge of friends and relatives
- One who has surrendered himself unto the lotus feet of Lord Hari, as above mentioned, can transcend all influences of the modes of material nature and be fixed in the service of the Lord
- One who is not prepared to practice injunctions prescribed in the sastras cannot be a good man simply by book knowledge
- One who is not seriously inclined to put questions before a spiritual master need not accommodate a show-bottle spiritual master
- One who misuses this opportunity of advanced intelligence is verily condemned and put into different types of miseries, either in this present life or in the future. That is the way the Supreme controls everyone
- One who understands this (comfort in life is but illusion) factually is learned, and such a learned person can sacrifice any amount of material happiness to achieve the desired goal known as brahma-sukham, or absolute happiness
- Only for man are there different Vedic instructions for attainment of salvation during the human form of existence
- Only the foolish man says that there is no God. Maharaja Yudhisthira was being convinced of this naked truth because he was greatly overwhelmed by the sudden departure of his old uncles and aunt
- Ordinarily one cannot change the course of one's due happiness and distress by plan. Everyone has to accept them as they come under the subtle arrangement of kala, or invincible time
- Our duration of life is measured, and no one is able to enhance it even by a second against the scheduled time ordained by the supreme will. Such valuable time, especially for the human being, should be cautiously spent
P
- Passion and ignorance increase the material propensities of hankering for material enjoyment, and a strong sense of lust provokes the accumulation of wealth and power
- Persistently endeavoring on the line of self-realization helps a person to rise to the conditions of a narottama from the stage of a dhira
- Personalities as Narada must be offered all due respects, like those offered to the Personality of Godhead Himself
- Persons like Dhrtarastra try to make plans to live there in a comfortable position with profit and interest, for they do not see things as they are. He is blind and continues to hope to live comfortably in the midst of all kinds of reverses of life
- Politicians especially do not retire from political activities unless they are dragged by the cruel hand of death or killed by some opposing element
- Prtha: Daughter of Maharaja Surasena and sister of Vasudeva, Lord Krsna's father. Later she was adopted by Maharaja Kuntibhoja, and hence she is known as Kunti. She is the incarnation of the success potency of the Personality of Godhead
- Pure devotees are able to rectify the polluted atmosphere of any place, and what to speak of a holy place rendered unholy by the questionable actions of interested persons who try to adopt a professional life at the cost of the reputation of a holy place
R
- Real perfection of the path of liberation is attained when one is practiced to depend fully on the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who lives in everyone's heart as Paramatma
- Real transcendentalists are hungry for this happiness, and as a hungry man cannot be made happy by all comforts of life minus foodstuff, so the man hungry for eternal absolute happiness cannot be satisfied by any amount of material happiness
S
- Saintly persons like Vidura must be treated as well as a denizen from heaven. In those days denizens of heavenly planets used to visit homes like that of Maharaja Yudhisthira, and sometimes persons like Arjuna and others used to visit higher planets
- Sanatana Gosvami also cheated the keeper of the prison house while going away to see Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and similarly Raghunatha dasa Gosvami also cheated his priest and left home for good to satisfy the Lord
- Sanjaya never thought that Dhrtarastra could perform any act without consulting him. But Dhrtarastra's going away from home was so confidential that it could not be disclosed even to Sanjaya
- Sanjaya was the personal assistant of Maharaja Dhrtarastra for a very long time, and thus he had the opportunity to study the life of Dhrtarastra. And when he saw at last that Dhrtarastra had left home without his knowledge, his sorrows had no bound
- Satisfaction of the Lord is the criterion of one who is bona fide, and the highest perfection of life is to satisfy the Lord by one's occupational duty. That is the verdict of Gita and Bhagavatam
- Saubalini, or Gandhari, daughter of King Subala and wife of King Dhrtarastra, was ideal as a wife devoted to her husband. The Vedic civilization especially prepares chaste and devoted wives, of whom Gandhari is one amongst many mentioned in history
- Self-realization is obstructed by such undue affection for family, and if anyone is at all able to forget such a relation, he is called undisturbed, or dhira
- She (Draupadi) is described as a most beautiful lady, equal to her mother-in-law, Kunti. During her birth there was an aeromessage that she should be called Krsna
- She (Draupadi) was a great devotee of Lord Krsna, and by her praying, the Lord Himself became an unlimited garment to save her from the insult
- She (Draupadi) was married with five Pandavas in the presence of Vyasadeva
- She (Draupadi) was married with the Pandavas during their exile in the forest, but when they went back home Maharaja Drupada gave them immense wealth as a dowry. She was well received by all the daughters-in-law of Dhrtarastra
- She (Draupadi) was very much aggrieved when her five sons were killed by Asvatthama. At the last stage, she accompanied her husband Yudhisthira and others and fell on the way
- She (Gandhari) desired that the state be divided into two parts for the sons of Pandu and her own. She was very affected when all her sons died in the Battle of Kuruksetra, and she wanted to curse Bhimasena & Yudhisthira, but she was checked by Vyasadeva
- She (Gandhari) died along with her husband in the jungles of the Himalayas near the mouth of the Ganges; she burned in a forest fire. Maharaja Yudhisthira performed the death ceremony of his uncle and aunt
- She (Gandhari) left home after losing her one hundred sons, and in the forest she saw that her most beloved husband was also burning. Now she actually felt alone, and therefore she entered the fire of her husband and followed her husband to death
- She (Gandhari) was an ideal woman as mother, wife and ascetic, and in the history of the world such character in a woman is rarely found
- She (Gandhari) was equally aggrieved on the death of Karna, and she described to Lord Krsna the lamentation of Karna's wife. She was pacified by Srila Vyasadeva when he showed her dead sons, then promoted to the heavenly kingdoms
- She (Gandhari) was the most beautiful girl of her time, and she was equally qualified by her womanly qualities, which endeared every member of the Kaurava court
- She (Kunti) advised Yudhisthira to start for the Pancaladesa. Draupadi was gained in this Pancaladesa by Arjuna, but by order of Kunti all five of the Pandava brothers became equally the husbands of Pancali, or Draupadi
- She (Kunti) called for the demigod Vayu (air), and thus Bhima was born. She called for Indra, the King of heaven, and thus Arjuna was born. The other two sons, namely Nakula and Sahadeva, were begotten by Pandu himself in the womb of Madri
- She (Kunti) used to take meals after each thirty days. She finally sat down in profound meditation and later burned to ashes in a forest fire
- She (Prtha) also served the great mystic sage Durvasa, and being satisfied by her faithful service, Durvasa Muni gave her a mantra by which it was possible for her to call for any demigod she pleased
- Since death is inevitable, why should he (Dhrtarastra) accept such a humiliating position for living?
- Since the spiritual world is a manifestation of the Lord's internal energy, the living beings within that internal potency are qualitatively one with the Lord without contamination from the external potency
- Sincere surrender unto the lotus feet of the Lord is possible by awakening the transcendental sense of service. This is made possible by association with pure devotees of the Lord
- Sri Baladeva was very angry at Arjuna (for kidnapping Subhadra), and He wanted to kill him, but Lord Krsna implored His brother to excuse Arjuna
- Sri Krsna knew that His elder brother, Lord Baladeva, was arranging her (Subhadra's) marriage elsewhere, and since He did not dare to go against the arrangement of Baladeva, He advised Arjuna to kidnap Subhadra
- Sri Naradadeva was just foretelling the way of his spiritual progress in a place which was sanctified by the flow of the celestial Ganges
- Sri Naradaji is an eternal spaceman, having been endowed with a spiritual body by the grace of the Lord. He can travel in the outer spaces of both the material and spiritual worlds without restriction
- Subhadra was duly married with Arjuna, and Abhimanyu was born of Subhadra. At the premature death of Abhimanyu, Subhadra was very mortified, but on the birth of Pariksit she was happy and solaced
- Subhadra: Daughter of Vasudeva and sister of Lord Sri Krsna. She was not only a very dear daughter of Vasudeva, but also a very dear sister to both Krsna and Baladeva. The two brothers and sister are represented in the famous Jagannatha temple of Puri
- Such (Vidura) a devotee is neither a sudra nor a brahmana. He is transcendental to 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
- Such experiences are all ephemeral and do not affect the spirit soul. The perception of such ephemeral happiness and distress is due only to the forgetfulness of his qualities, which are equal to the Lord's
T
- Talks of spiritual enlightenment are so refreshing that while instructing Dhrtarastra, Vidura attracted the attention of all the members of the family, and all of them took pleasure in hearing him patiently. This is the way of spiritual realization
- That (varnasrama dharma) is a routine division of life, but persons like Dhrtarastra, even at their weary ripened age, want to stay home, even in a degraded condition of accepting charity from enemies
- That alone (preaching bhakti-yoga) can save the people from the control of maya, or the material nature represented by kala, karma and guna, as described above. The Bhagavad-gita (BG 14.26) confirms this definitely
- That great souls cheat others may be astonishing to know, but it is a fact that great souls cheat others for a great cause. It is said that Lord Krsna also advised Yudhisthira to tell a lie before Dronacarya, and it was also for a great cause
- That is the condition of material existence. All living beings in the material world have taken up the risk of conditioned life by their own selection and are thus entrapped by the laws of material nature
- The actual fact is that every living being is an individual part and parcel of the Supreme Being, and his constitutional position is subordinate cooperative service
- 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 best remedy for getting out of the clutches of the cobralike kala or its integrity, the modes of nature, is bhakti-yoga, as it is recommended in the Bhagavad-gita
- The Bhagavad-gita (BG 15.15) confirms this statement - by nature a living being is the eternal servitor of the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna
- The bhakti-yoga process directly applies the senses to the loving service of the Lord. This prohibits the performer from engaging in material activities
- The blind leaders must understand the Supreme Being and then try to implement the kingdom of God
- The cause of her falling was explained by Yudhisthira, but when Yudhisthira entered the heavenly planet he saw Draupadi gloriously present there as the goddess of fortune in the heavenly planet
- The celebrated English king wanted to order time and tide, but the time and tide refused to obey his order. Therefore one is a false king in the material world, and Dhrtarastra was particularly reminded of this false position
- The codes of religion, scriptural injunctions, are made by liberated representatives of God in consideration of different conditions of living
- The conclusion is that Vidura was never a sudra, but was greater than the purest type of brahmana
- The conditioned living beings contact material association by their own choice, dictated by a strong desire to lord it over the resources of the material world and become imitation lords of all they survey. Everyone is trying to become an imitation God
- The conditioned soul, the living being in material existence, seeks happiness by employing his senses in the modes of materialism, but that cannot give him satisfaction
- The conditioned souls are within the coverings, whereas the liberated soul is far beyond the cover
- The confidential devotees of the Lord treat such illusioned living beings, and they are most pleasing in the eyes of the Lord
- The demigods in higher planets, pray to the Lord for relief, and the Lord either descends personally from His abode or deputes some of His devotees to remodel the fallen condition of human society, or even animal society
- The dhira stage is attained after prolonged practice of the yoga system, but by the grace of Vidura one can attain the stage immediately simply by willing to adopt the means of the dhira stage, which is the preparatory stage for sannyasa
- The effects of the material modes of nature draw the victim to indefatigable desires of enjoying matter, but one can escape such false enjoyment by the yogic process
- The ekadandi-svamis are mostly fond of the Himalayas, but the Vaisnava sannyasis are fond of Vrndavana and Puri. The Vaisnava sannyasis are narottamas, whereas the Mayavadi sannyasis are dhiras
- The eternal living entity transmigrates from one material body to another by the law of karma, and material bodies are perishable by their fundamental structures
- The example of a player and his playthings should not be misunderstood. One may argue that since the Lord is bound to award the reactionary results of our own actions, the example of a player cannot be applied. But it is not so
- The example of the player cited in this verse is quite appropriate, for the Supreme Will is absolutely free to do whatever He likes, and because He is all-perfect, there is no mistake in any of His actions or reactions
- The fight was executed by the will of the Lord, but the effects of family aggrievement, as they had thought of it before, had come to be true
- The first answer is that even though it is accepted that he (Vidura) was a sudra by birth, he renounced the world for spiritual enlightenment by the authority of Rsi Maitreya
- The foolish living being, especially man, artificially rebels against the law of the Supreme and thus becomes chastised as an asura, or lawbreaker
- The foolish man does not know that a particular term of bodily existence is awarded to him to undergo a term of imprisonment & the human body is awarded, after many, many births and deaths as a chance for self-realization to go back home back to Godhead
- The force of divine energy is uncheckable; no one has any hand in it, and thus there is no cause of grief
- The heavenly denizens from the upper planets used to visit the palace of King Kuntibhoja, and Kunti was engaged for their reception
- The highest perfectional project of philanthropic activities is to engage everyone in the act of preaching bhakti-yoga all over the world
- The holy places all over the earth are meant for purifying the polluted consciousness of the human being by an atmosphere surcharged with the presence of the Lord's unalloyed devotees
- The household children are taken to practice what the parents practice, and therefore the whole generation glides towards hell. Nothing good can be expected from them unless they associate with sadhus
- The householders are required to 2) at last offering to the elderly members due respects and obeisances
- The householders are required to rise early in the morning, and after bathing they should 1) offer respects to the Deities at home by prayers, by offering fuel in the sacred fire, by giving the brahmanas in charity land, cows, grains, gold, etc
- The human being is meant for self-realization, and for that purpose he is not to eat anything which is not first offered to the Lord
- The idea is that the renounced order of life, after a frustrated life of sentiment in the material world, may be the stepping stone on the path of self-realization
- The instruction described in this verse cannot be applied to Maharaja Yudhisthira or his brothers and mother. It was meant for persons like Dhrtarastra, for whom Vidura came especially to impart lessons
- The King (Dhrtarastra) is reminded of his precarious condition, influenced by cruel time, and by his past experience he should have been more intelligent to see what was going to happen to his own life
- The king personally begged the muni's (Manduka Muni) pardon for the mistake of his men, and the saint at once went to Yamaraja, who prescribes the destiny of the living beings
- The kingdom of God, or Rama-rajya, is impossible without the awakening of God consciousness in the mass mind of the people of the world
- The krpana, having a wrong estimation of his material body, wants to enjoy sense gratification with his utmost strength, and even in old age he wants to become a young man by medical treatment or otherwise
- The krpana, or the miserly man, has no estimation of his material body, but the brahmana has a true estimation of himself and the material body
- The living being is the source of subsistence for other, stronger living beings. No one should be very anxious for his subsistence in any circumstances because there are living beings everywhere, and no living being starves for want of food at any place
- The living being, by his desiring to lord it over the material world and declining to cooperate with the Supreme Lord, contacts the sum total of the material world, namely the mahat-tattva
- The living beings are also manifestations of His marginal energy, qualitatively one with the Lord, and there are innumerable living beings both within and without the external and internal energies of the Lord
- The living beings who are obedient to the supreme father are called devatas, or demigods, because they are not contaminated by the material conception of life
- The living beings who have come to the material world against the will of the Supreme Being are under the control of a supreme power called maya-sakti, the deputed agent of the Lord, who is meant to pinch the conditioned souls by threefold miseries
- The Lord accepts from His devotee all kinds of food preparations made of vegetables, fruits, leaves and grains
- 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
- The Lord and His very confidential devotees are treated on the same level by those who are actually engaged in the loving service of the Lord
- The Lord descends from His abode (Krsnaloka), the topmost planet in the spiritual sky, in order to help the demigod administrators of this material world when they are greatly vexed by the asuras, who are envious not only of God but also of His devotees
- The Lord is known as bhuta-bhrt, one who gives protection to all living beings. One should discharge his duties only, for no one but the Supreme Lord can give protection to anyone else. This is explained more clearly in the following verse
- The Lord says in the Bhagavad-gita that no one is dearer to Him than one who actually preaches the glories of the Lord to convert the nonbelievers and nondevotees
- The Lord wanted it (that Yudhisthira told a lie to Dronacarya), and therefore it was a great cause
- The Lord's mercy was bestowed upon him (Dhrtarastra) by his personal contact with Vidura, and when he was actually practicing the instructions of Vidura, the Lord helped him to attain the highest perfectional stage
- The Lord's omnipresence is perceived and manifested by His unalloyed devotees like Vidura, just as electricity is manifested in an electric bulb
- The magistrate specifically punished the muni (Manduka Muni) to death by being pierced with a lance. When he was just to be pierced, the news reached the king, and he at once stopped the act on consideration of his being a great muni
- The material body, which is subject to birth and death, diseases and old age, is the cause of all sufferings of the living being, otherwise the living being is eternal; he is never born, nor does he ever die
- The material modes of nature (the gunas) have their different modes of activities, but above the material modes of nature is a spiritual mode, which is absolute
- The Mayavadi sannyasis are ekadandi-svamis, whereas the Vaisnava sannyasis are known as tridandi-svamis, or more distinctly, tridandi-gosvamis, in order to be distinguished from the Mayavadi philosophers
- The meeting of Radha and Krsna during this occasion (in Kuruksetra during the solar eclipse) is a very pathetic story, and Lord Sri Caitanya, in the ecstasy of Radharani, always pined for Lord Sri Krsna at Jagannatha Puri
- The message should be heard attentively, and if spoken by a realized soul, it will act on the dormant heart of the conditioned soul. And by continuously hearing, one can attain the perfect stage of self-realization
- The muni (Manduka Muni) thought it unwise on the part of Yamaraja that he was punished for his childish innocence, and thus the muni cursed Yamaraja to become a sudra
- The only remaining hope was the child in the womb of his daughter-in-law, Uttara, and he was also attacked by Asvatthama, but by the grace of the Lord the child was saved
- The only thing possible to be done is to get rid of eternal time, kala, which is compared to kala-sarpa, or the cobra snake, whose bite is always lethal. No one can be saved from the bite of a cobra
- The Pandavas, especially Maharaja Yudhisthira and Arjuna, anticipated the aftereffects of the Battle of Kuruksetra, and therefore Arjuna declined to execute the fighting
- The particular word krsna-devatah, i.e., those who are always rapt in the service of Lord Krsna, is significant
- The Personality of Godhead is always with pure devotees because of their unalloyed service, which is without any tinge of fruitive action or utopian speculation. They are in the actual service of the Lord specifically by the process of hearing & chanting
- The Personality of Godhead is omnipresent by His diverse potencies everywhere, just as the power of electricity is distributed everywhere within space
- The predominance of asuras in the world is occasionally rectified by the Lord when He eliminates them from the world and establishes a rule of devatas like the Pandavas. His designation as kala in disguise is significant
- The preliminary activities of the way of yoga are asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dhyana, dharana, etc
- The preliminary processes are the sitting posture, meditation, spiritual thoughts, manipulation of air passing within the body, and gradual situation in trance, facing the Absolute Person, Paramatma
- The pure devotees hear from the authorities and chant, sing and write of the glories of the Lord
- The result is that the people in general suffer more by breaking the laws of God than by obeying the imperfect laws made by man
- The same message also declared that she (Draupadi) was born to kill many a ksatriya. By dint of her blessings from Sankara, she was awarded five husbands, equally qualified
- The same thing happens in the case of a poor man also. Neither rich man nor poor man has any control over such meetings or separations of living beings
- The sannyasa stage is the preparatory stage of paramahamsa, or the first-grade devotee of the Lord
- The sannyasis accept a rod as the sign of the renounced order of life. There are two types of sannyasis
- The scriptures enjoin that one should associate with sadhus only, rejecting all other kinds of association, and by doing so one will have ample opportunity to hear the sadhus, who can cut to pieces the bonds of illusory affection in the material world
- The signs pointed out by Vidura in the body of Dhrtarastra were signs of apaksaya, or dwindling of the material body before the last stroke of death. The body is born, it develops, stays, creates other bodies, dwindles and then vanishes
- The sky remains, and the varieties of sky or luminaries also remain forever. Similarly, the Absolute Truth, which is compared to the sky, remains eternally, and the temporary cloudlike illusion comes and goes away
- The spiritual regulative principles, however, do not allow a man to slaughter weaker animals on one side and teach others peaceful coexistence
- The statutory laws of the state are imperfect imitation replicas of religious codes. The secular state, or the godless state, allows the citizens to break the laws of God, but restricts them from disobeying the laws of the state
- The story (Vidura's) is narrated as follows. Once upon a time the state police caught some thieves who had concealed themselves in the hermitage of Manduka Muni. The police constables, as usual, arrested all the thieves and Manduka Muni along with them
- The sudra incarnation of Yamaraja was known as Vidura, the sudra brother of Dhrtarastra and Maharaja Pandu
- The Supreme Lord is present as the localized Paramatma in the heart of every living being, as it is said in the Bhagavad-gita (BG 13.23), and therefore he knows everything of our activities in every stage of our lives
- The Supreme Lord Personality of Godhead is one without a second, but He manifests Himself by different energies because He is by nature blissful
- The symptoms of old age, which had already developed in Dhrtarastra, were all one after another pointed out to him as warning that death was nearing very quickly, and still he was foolishly carefree about his future
- The system of varnasrama religion sets aside a part of one's life completely for the purpose of self-realization and attainment of salvation in the human form of life
- The temple (of Lord Jagannatha in Puri) is still visited by thousands of pilgrims daily. This temple is in remembrance of the Lord's visit at Kuruksetra during an occasion of solar eclipse and His subsequent meeting with the residents of Vrndavana
- The word rajan is especially addressed to Dhrtarastra significantly. Dhrtarastra was the eldest son of his father, and therefore according to law he was to be installed on the throne of Hastinapura
- The words krpanasya jijivisoh are significant. There are two classes of men. One is called the krpana, and the other is called the brahmana
- The world's movements for freedom through political, economic, social, and cultural propaganda can do no benefit to anyone, for they are controlled by superior power
- The Yadavas and the Pandavas, who were always rapt in the thought of the Lord Krsna and His different transcendental activities, were all pure devotees of the Lord like Vidura
- The yoga system is a mechanical way to control the senses and the mind and divert them from matter to spirit
- The yogi is able to quit his body by his own choice of time and can attain any planet he desires by turning the present body into ashes by self-made fire
- Then how could he (Vidura) occupy the post of a preacher to instruct such learned kings and ksatriyas as Dhrtarastra and Maharaja Yudhisthira?
- There are different types of philosophers, and the greatest of all of them are those who have seen the Personality of Godhead and have surrendered themselves in the transcendental loving service of the Lord
- There are hundreds and thousands of examples all over the world, all over the universe, which are all effects of the influence of time. The conclusion is that there is no powerful living being within the universe who can overcome the influence of time
- There are hundreds of examples of reactions changed by the Lord in the history of the world
- There are many examples of sincere devotees in the history of the world, especially in India, and they are our guides on the path of self-realization
- There are many such instances of calamities, and in each of them Vidura gave protection to the Pandavas on one hand, and on the other he tried to restrain his brother Dhrtarastra from such intriguing policies
- There are others also who believe in the merging of the spirit soul in the Supreme Spirit when it is uncovered by the material encagement, and there are others also who do not believe in the existence of spirit or soul, but believe in tangible matter
- There are three classes of transcendentalists (3) a sincere devotee of the Lord, who awakens God consciousness by hearing and chanting and leaves home depending completely on the Personality of Godhead, who resides in his heart
- There are three classes of transcendentalists, namely, (1) the dhira, or the one who is not disturbed by being away from family association, (2) one in the renounced order of life, a sannyasi by frustrated sentiment
- There are three material modes of nature, namely goodness, passion and ignorance
- There are two classes of human beings, namely the envious and the obedient. Since the Supreme Lord is one and the father of all living beings, the envious living beings are also His sons, but they are known as the asuras
- There is a regular current from the Lord Himself, from within and without, by which to rectify the fallen condition of the living being
- There is death even in the topmost planet of this universe, and what to speak of other planets, which are far, far inferior in quality to Brahmaloka, the residing planet of Brahma
- There is necessity of change in the makeshift laws of man, but there is no change in the God-made laws because they are made perfect by the all-perfect Personality of Godhead
- There is no possibility of checking this tendency by any artificial means under material conditions; it can be checked only by awakening the spiritual sense of the human being by practice of spiritual regulations
- There is no superior power which can check the cruel hands of death. No one wants to die, however acute the source of bodily sufferings may be
- There is no use trying to counteract them (happiness or distress). The best thing is that one should endeavor to achieve salvation, and this prerogative is given only to man because of his developed condition of mental activities and intelligence
- There is nothing to be lamented if a tiger eats a weaker animal, including a man, because that is the law of the Supreme Lord
- There is nothing to be lamented in the case of the soul's being transferred into another body, or the material body's perishing at a certain stage
- These (I am now happy; I have everything in order; my bank balance is quite enough) are some of the thoughts which engross the insanely attached householder who is blind to the passing of eternal time
- These (improving family affairs) are common affairs for a man grossly materialistic and without knowledge of the spiritual force. He (Dhrtarastra) does not see how this can drag one from heaven to hell
- These changes of resultant actions are especially rendered by the Lord when a pure devotee is involved
- These two sons (Duryodhana and Duhsasana) were very much dear to him (Dhrtarastra) for their notorious and nefarious activities, and Bhima is particularly pointed out because he killed these two pet sons
- They (foolish human beings) carry out the orders of the Supreme Lord under the influence of respective scriptural or legislative injunctions
- They (foolish men) take sadhus and saints as parasites of society, and almost all of them refuse to hear the words of such sadhus and saints, although they welcome show-bottle sadhus and so-called saints who can satisfy their senses
- They forget their permanent identity and become foolishly active for impermanent occupations, forgetting altogether their prime duty. Saints and sages like Vidura approach such foolish men to awaken them to the real situation
- This (the disagreement between Dhrtarastra and Vidura) resulted in Vidura's leaving home for pilgrimage and taking instructions from Maitreya
- This (the notice of the arrival of death) is explained before Dhrtarastra because he might ask Vidura to find out some remedial measure for the imminent fearful situation, as he had ordered many times before
- This agreement (between Kunti and Madri) was endorsed by great sages like Satasrnga and others present on the occasion
- This causal form of the Lord is not at all pleasing to the asuras, and therefore they think of the Lord as formless in order to feel secure that they will not be vanquished by the Lord
- This entering of a chaste lady into the fire of her dead husband is called the sati rite, and the action is considered to be most perfect for a woman
- This is specifically described in the Mahabharata (Adi-parva 114). He (Vidura) indirectly hinted, A weapon not made of steel or any other material element can be more than sharp to kill an enemy, and he who knows this is never killed
- This is the highest perfectional development of spiritual identity, which was attained by Dhrtarastra by the grace of Vidura and the Lord
- This is the path of renunciation based on a frustrated life, but stabilization of such renunciation is possible only by association with bona fide saints and self-realized souls by which one can be engaged in the loving devotional service of the Lord
- This preparatory stage (to the renounced order of life) is called vanaprastha-asrama, or retired life for traveling and visiting the holy places on the surface of the earth
- This process of turning the senses from material attachment to the loving transcendental service of the Lord is called pratyahara, and the very process is called pranayama, ending in samadhi, or absorption in pleasing the Supreme Lord Hari by all means
- This prophecy of Narada Muni to Maharaja Yudhisthira forbade him to go to his widowed aunt
- This sudra son of the Kuru dynasty was equally treated by Bhismadeva, along with his other nephews, and in due course Vidura was married with a girl who was also born in the womb of a sudrani by a brahmana
- Those who are not conversant with factual knowledge put forward many speculative propositions about the real position of the living entity. It is admitted, however, by all schools of philosophy, that the living being is eternal
- Those who follow the Mayavadi philosophy, headed by Sripada Sankaracarya, accept only one rod, but those who follow the Vaisnavite philosophy accept three combined rods
- To become narottama, or a first-class human being depending completely on the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna, is not possible for any ordinary man
- To go to some holy place of pilgrimage does not mean only to take a bath in the Ganges or Yamuna or to visit the temples situated in those places
- To pacify the mourning Yudhisthira, Narada first of all spoke from the philosophical point of view, and then he began to describe the future movements of his uncle, which he could see by his foreseeing powers, and thus began to describe as follows
- To satisfy the Lord, anything is good, for it is in relation with the Absolute Truth
- To stick to family life to the end of one's human life is the grossest type of degradation and there is an absolute need for the Viduras to educate such Dhrtarastras, even at the present moment
- Two co-wives, namely Kunti and Madri, decided that Kunti should live for the maintenance of the five minor children, the Pandavas, and Madri should accept the sati rituals by meeting voluntary death along with her husband
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- Ultimately the result of such mercy certainly depended on the will of the Supreme Lord in the present life; Dhrtarastra attained liberation only, and after many such liberated states of life one can attain to the stage of devotional service
- Unless one has become a sufficiently learned philosopher by hearing the Vedanta philosophy from a bona fide spiritual master, one cannot be a learned philosopher devotee
- Unless one is convinced of a better life after renunciation of the present life, one cannot stick to the renounced order of life simply by artificial dress or staying out of the home
- Unless one is situated in the mode of goodness, one cannot see things as they are. The passionate and the ignorant cannot even see things as they are
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- Vidura asked him (Dhrtarastra) to get out (of the false position of King) immediately, if he wanted to be saved from the fearful situation which was approaching him fast
- Vidura came in disguise to the Pandavas and informed them that the housekeeper was going to set fire to the house on the fourteenth night of the waning moon
- Vidura is the incarnation of Yamaraja who, being cursed by Manduka Muni, was to become a sudra
- Vidura left home in order to devote himself completely to the service of the Lord, but the Pandavas and the Yadavas were always rapt in the thought of Lord Krsna. Thus there is no difference in their pure devotional qualities
- Vidura particularly came to enlighten Dhrtarastra and to give him a lift to the higher status of spiritual cognition. It is the duty of enlightened souls to deliver the fallen ones, and Vidura came for that reason
- Vidura retired from putting questions before Maitreya Muni when he was convinced by him that the summum bonum of life is to be finally situated in the transcendental loving service of Lord Sri Krsna ,Govinda one who satisfies His devotees in all respects
- Vidura sarcastically addressed Dhrtarastra as the "King," which he was actually not. Everyone is the servant of eternal time, and therefore no one can be king in this material world. King means the person who can order
- Vidura wanted to point out to Dhrtarastra that everyone has to protect himself by his action and the grace of the Lord
- Vidura wanted to point this out and impressed upon him that it was better to die like his sons than accept such humiliating charity. Five thousand years ago there was one Dhrtarastra, but at the present moment there are Dhrtarastras in every home
- Vidura was astonished to see the marvelous departure of his brother Dhrtarastra as a liberated yogi, for in his past life he was much attached to materialism. Of course it was only due to Vidura that his brother attained the desirable goal of life
- Vidura was certainly very mortified by the death of his brother and sister-in-law, and the only remedy to mitigate such lamentation was to go out to pilgrimage. Thus Maharaja Yudhisthira had no chance to call back Vidura, his surviving uncle
- Vidura was glad to learn about it. But he was sorry that he could not make his brother turn into a pure devotee. This was not done by Vidura because of Dhrtarastra's being inimical to the Pandavas, who were all devotees of the Lord
- Vidura was not a sadhu to satisfy the ill-gotten sentiment of Dhrtarastra. He was correctly pointing out the real situation of life, and how one can save oneself from such catastrophies
- Vidura was not actually a sudra. He was to play the part of a so-called sudra for one hundred years, being cursed by Manduka Muni
- Vidura was so dear to the members of the Kaurava family that his long absence from the palace was comparable to inactivity. All of them were feeling acute separation from Vidura, and therefore his return to the palace was joyful for all
- Vidura was successful in approaching such a spiritual master like Maitreya, and he got the ultimate goal of life: bhakti unto Govinda. Thus there was nothing to be known further about spiritual progress
- Vidura was very much attached to his elder brother (Dhrtarastra), and all along he tried to guide him on the right path
- Vidura was well received by all the family members by exchange of embraces and obeisances. After that, bathing and arrangements for a sumptuous dinner were made, and then he was given sufficient rest
- Vidura went out from the palace to detach himself from household affairs, especially political intrigues
- Vidura's mother, although a sudrani, was the grandmother of Duryodhana, and funny talks are sometimes allowed between grandmother and grandchildren
- Vidura, as a saint and as the duty-bound affectionate youngest brother of Dhrtarastra, wanted to awaken Dhrtarastra from his slumber of disease and old age
- Vidura, born in the womb of a sudra woman, was forbidden even to be a party of royal heritage along with his brothers Dhrtarastra and Pandu
- Vidura, was astonished how powerful is the urge to continue life. This sense of continuing one's life indicates that a living being is eternally a living entity and does not want to change his bodily habitation
- Vidura: One of the prominent figures in the history of the Mahabharata
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- We also had the same opportunity to cheat the family members and leave home to engage in the service of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Such cheating was necessary for a great cause, and there is no loss for any party in such transcendental fraud
- We can just imagine how responsible a task is entrusted to a sadhu like Mahatma Vidura
- We may note with profit how Dhrtarastra began his yoga system by drinking water only and sitting calmly in a place with a spiritual atmosphere, deeply absorbed in the thoughts of the Lord Hari, the Personality of Godhead
- We must always remember that the Lord is the Supreme Will, and He is not bound by any law
- We must know for certain that the particular position in which we are now set up is an arrangement of the supreme will in terms of our own acts in the past
- Were we not favored by Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, by our first meeting for a few minutes only, it would have been impossible for us to accept this mighty task of describing Srimad-Bhagavatam in English
- When all of them (Krsna, Baladeva and Arjuna) were on a pleasure trip on the Raivata Hill, Arjuna managed to kidnap Subhadra according to the plan of Sri Krsna
- When Gandhari came to know that her would-be husband was a blind man, to follow her life companion she decided to become voluntarily blind
- When he (Maharaja Yudhisthira) could not find his uncle and aunt in the palace, naturally his doubts arose, and he conjectured that they had gone down to the water of the Ganges
- When she (Draupadi) preferred to select her own husband, princes and kings were invited from all the countries of the world
- When she (Draupadi) was lost in a gambling game, she was forcibly dragged into the assembly hall, and an attempt was made by Duhsasana to see her naked beauty, even though there were elderly persons like Bhisma and Drona present
- When she (Kunti) inquired from her son about the purport of the conversation, Yudhisthira replied that from the talks of Vidura it was understood that there was a hint of fire in the house where they were proceeding
- When the (sati rite) rite became a formality only and force was applied upon a lady to follow the principle, actually it became criminal, and therefore the ceremony was to be stopped by state law
- When the intrigue of the Battle of Kuruksetra was going on, she (Gandhari) was not in favor of fighting with the Pandavas; rather, she blamed Dhrtarastra, her husband, for such a fratricidal war
- When the Pandavas lived incognito in the palace of Virata, Kicaka was attracted by her (Draupadi's) exquisite beauty, and by arrangement with Bhima the devil was killed and she was saved
- When the Pandavas were banished from the kingdom by the intrigues of Duryodhana, Kunti followed her sons, and she equally faced all sorts of difficulties during those days
- When the Pandavas were going there in the presence of all the members of the royal family, Vidura tactfully gave instructions to the Pandavas about the future plan of Dhrtarastra
- When there are too many asuras in the world, then it becomes a hell for those who are devotees of the Lord
- When we think of our kith and kin as being helpless and dependent on us, it is all due to ignorance. Every living creature is allowed all protection by the order of the Supreme Lord in terms of each one's acquired position in the world
- When Yamaraja incarnated himself as Vidura, his post was officiated by Aryama, one of the many sons of Kasyapa and Aditi
- Wherever there is the influence of eternal time, there is this set of tribulations, namely birth, disease, old age and death, and all of them are invincible
- While Arjuna was at Dvaraka, he wanted to have Subhadra as his queen, and he expressed his desire to Lord Krsna
- Why was Dhrtarastra living there at the house of the Pandavas? Because he wanted to continue his life comfortably, even at the risk of all humiliation
- With all these imperial ambitions, Dhrtarastra wanted to become a king, and he contrived all sorts of intrigues in consultation with his brother-in-law Sakuni
- With foolish ideas, they (fools) become overtaken by temporary engagements and forget altogether that they must give up this temporary body and take a new one, again to arrange for another term of society, friendship and love, again to perish ultimately
- Without seeing him (His Divine Grace Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja) at that opportune moment never would we have been able to 2) be engaged in the factual service of the Lord under instructions of His Divine Grace
- Without seeing him (His Divine Grace Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Maharaja) at that opportune moment, we could have become a very great business magnate, but never 1) would we have been able to walk the path of liberation
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- Yamaraja has to do more work than other demigods who are also authorized agents of the Supreme Lord
- Yamaraja has very little time to take leave from his responsible office of punishing the wrongdoers. There are more wrongdoers than righteous men
- 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
- Yamaraja, being questioned by the muni (Manduka Muni), replied that the muni in his childhood pierced an ant with a sharpened straw, and for that reason he was put into difficulty
- Yudhisthira Maharaja and his brothers the Pandavas were all engaged in the service of the Lord Sri Krsna, and they had very little attraction for the illusory happiness of this material world
- Yudhisthira Maharaja is advised by Narada not to be disturbed by the affairs of so-called happiness and distress, but to look only unto the Lord to execute the mission for which the Lord has descended. That was his prime duty