Devanagari
क्षत्ता महाभागवत: कृष्णस्यैकान्तिक: सुहृत् ।
यस्तत्याजाग्रजं कृष्णे सापत्यमघवानिति ॥ २ ॥
Verse text
kṣattā mahā-bhāgavataḥ
kṛṣṇasyaikāntikaḥ suhṛt
yas tatyājāgrajaṁ kṛṣṇe
sāpatyam aghavān iti
Synonyms
kṣattā
—
Vidura
;
mahā
—
bhāgavataḥ — a great devotee of the Lord
;
kṛṣṇasya
—
of Lord Kṛṣṇa
;
ekāntikaḥ
—
unalloyed devotee
;
suhṛt
—
intimate friend
;
yaḥ
—
he who
;
tatyāja
—
abandoned
;
agra
—
jam — his elder brother (King Dhṛtarāṣṭra)
;
kṛṣṇe
—
toward Kṛṣṇa
;
sa
—
apatyam — along with his one hundred sons
;
agha
—
vān — offender
;
iti
—
thus .
Translation
Śaunaka Ṛṣi inquired about Vidura, who was a great devotee and friend of Lord Kṛṣṇa and who gave up the company of his elder brother because the latter, along with his sons, played tricks against the desires of the Lord.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Vidura, was the greatest friend and devotee of Kṛṣṇa, who gave up his elder brother along with his son who would not listen to Kṛṣṇa’s advice since he was an offender, and who was born of Vyāsa and consequently not less than him, Taking shelter of Kṛṣṇa with body, mind and words, he would approach the Lord’s devotees. After purifying himself by visiting many holy places, what did he inquire from Maitreya, living in Haridvāra, who knew about Kṛṣṇa?
Please tell us the questions and answers that took place in the conversation between Vidura and Maitreya? Vidura rejected his elder brother along with his sons headed by Duryodhana. Anavaraḥ means “not less.” Virajāḥ means “purified of passion.” This was caused by visiting holy places. The holy places also became pure by association with him. Kuśāvarta is Haridvāra.
Purport
The incident referred to here is that Vidura left the protection of his elder brother Dhṛtarāṣṭra, went traveling everywhere to sacred places and met Maitreya at Hardwar. Śaunaka Ṛṣi here inquires about the topics of the conversation between Maitreya Ṛṣi and Vidura. Vidura’s qualification was that he was not only a friend of the Lord but also a great devotee. When Kṛṣṇa tried to stop the war and mitigate the misunderstanding between the cousin-brothers, they refused to accept His counsel; therefore Kṣattā, or Vidura, was unsatisfied with them, and he left the palace. As a devotee, Vidura showed by example that anywhere that Kṛṣṇa is not honored is a place unfit for human habitation. A devotee may be tolerant regarding his own interests, but he should not be tolerant when there is misbehavior toward the Lord or the Lord’s devotee. Here the word
aghavān
is very significant, for it indicates that the Kauravas, Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, lost the war because of being sinful in disobeying the instructions of Kṛṣṇa.