Shloka 2
Secondary Creation Begins: Brahmā’s Productions, the Guṇas, and the Emergence of Orders of Beings
क्षत्ता महाभागवत: कृष्णस्यैकान्तिक: सुहृत् । यस्तत्याजाग्रजं कृष्णे सापत्यमघवानिति ॥ २ ॥
kṣattā mahā-bhāgavataḥ kṛṣṇasyaikāntikaḥ suhṛt yas tatyājāgrajaṁ kṛṣṇe sāpatyam aghavān iti
Vidura, the kṣattā, was a great bhāgavata—an exclusive devotee and dear friend of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. He abandoned the company of his elder brother Dhṛtarāṣṭra, for that brother, along with his sons, contrived deceptions against the Lord’s desire.
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.
FAQs
This verse highlights single-minded devotion to Kṛṣṇa (ekāntika-bhakti), genuine goodwill (suhṛt), and the courage to reject sinful association—even if it is one’s own family.
Because Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s side was bound to impiety, and Vidura chose loyalty to Kṛṣṇa and dharma over family attachment, abandoning his brother and his faction.
Keep devotion and ethics central, avoid enabling wrongdoing, and choose uplifting association—remaining respectful, but not compromising principles for social or family pressure.