Shloka 2
Vidura’s Questions on Devotion and Sarga; Maitreya Begins the Account of Creation
विदुर उवाच सुखाय कर्माणि करोति लोको न तै: सुखं वान्यदुपारमं वा । विन्देत भूयस्तत एव दु:खं यदत्र युक्तं भगवान् वदेन्न: ॥ २ ॥
vidura uvāca sukhāya karmāṇi karoti loko na taiḥ sukhaṁ vānyad-upāramaṁ vā vindeta bhūyas tata eva duḥkhaṁ yad atra yuktaṁ bhagavān vaden naḥ
Vidura said: O great sage, people perform works seeking happiness, yet by such acts they find neither true joy nor satisfaction nor relief from distress; rather, their suffering increases. Therefore, please instruct us how one should live to attain real happiness.
Vidura asked Maitreya some common questions, which was not originally his intention. Uddhava asked Vidura to approach Maitreya Muni and inquire into all the truths concerning the Lord — His name, fame, qualities, form, pastimes, entourage, etc. — and thus when Vidura approached Maitreya, he should have asked only about the Lord. But out of natural humility he did not immediately ask about the Lord, but inquired into a subject which would be of great importance to the common man. A common man cannot understand the Lord. He must first know the real position of his life under the influence of the illusory energy. In illusion one thinks that he can be happy only by fruitive activities, but what actually happens is that one becomes more and more entangled in the network of action and reaction and does not find any solution to the problem of life. There is a nice song in this connection: “Because of a great desire to have all happiness in life, I built this house. But unfortunately the whole scheme has turned to ashes because the house was unexpectedly set on fire.” The law of nature is like that. Everyone tries to become happy by planning in the material world, but the law of nature is so cruel that it sets fire to one’s schemes; the fruitive worker is not happy in his schemes, nor is there any satiation of his continuous hankering for happiness.
FAQs
This verse states that people act for happiness, yet those same actions fail to give real happiness or lasting relief; instead they often generate repeated suffering, so one should seek the Lord’s guidance for what is truly beneficial.
Vidura recognizes that ordinary worldly striving keeps producing distress, so he seeks the Lord-centered, truly fitting path (dharma leading to liberation) rather than more fruitive activity.
Notice which pursuits repeatedly create anxiety despite promises of happiness, and prioritize spiritual practice and guidance (devotion, right conduct, and wisdom) aimed at lasting inner freedom rather than temporary gains.