Shloka 1
विदुर उवाच ये त्वयाभिहिता ब्रह्मन् सुता: प्राचीनबर्हिष: । ते रुद्रगीतेन हरिं सिद्धिमापु: प्रतोष्य काम् ॥ १ ॥
vidura uvāca ye tvayābhihitā brahman sutāḥ prācīnabarhiṣaḥ te rudra-gītena hariṁ siddhim āpuḥ pratoṣya kām
Vidura asked: O brāhmaṇa, you once spoke of the sons of Prācīnabarhi, saying they pleased Śrī Hari by chanting Rudra’s hymn. What sacred perfection did they attain thereby?
In the beginning, Maitreya Ṛṣi narrated the activities of the sons of Prācīnabarhi. These sons went beside a great lake, which was like an ocean, and fortunately finding Lord Śiva, they learned how to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead by chanting the songs composed by Lord Śiva. Now their father’s attachment for fruitive activities was disapproved by Nārada, who therefore kindly instructed Prācīnabarhi by telling him the allegorical story of Purañjana. Now Vidura again wanted to hear about Prācīnabarhi’s sons, and he was especially inquisitive to know what they achieved by satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Here the words siddhim āpuḥ, or “achieved perfection,” are very important. Lord Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (7.3) , manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye: out of many, many millions of people, one may be interested in learning how to attain success in spiritual matters. The supreme success is mentioned also in Bhagavad-gītā (8.15) :
FAQs
This verse states that the Pracetās attained siddhi by pleasing Lord Hari through Rudra’s hymn—showing that heartfelt glorification of God is a direct means to spiritual perfection.
Vidura is confirming the narrative: the Pracetās followed Rudra’s instruction and prayer, and by that devotional worship they satisfied Hari and achieved their goal.
Adopt a steady practice of sincere prayer and glorification of God—using authentic hymns and devotion—focusing on pleasing the Lord rather than chasing results.