Shloka 21
Vidura’s Questions on Devotion and Sarga; Maitreya Begins the Account of Creation
भवान् भगवतो नित्यं सम्मत: सानुगस्य ह । यस्य ज्ञानोपदेशाय मादिशद्भगवान् व्रजन् ॥ २१ ॥
bhavān bhagavato nityaṁ sammataḥ sānugasya ha yasya jñānopadeśāya mādiśad bhagavān vrajan
You are one of the Supreme Lord’s eternal associates, and thus you are always dear to Him. For the sake of instructing you in divine knowledge, the Lord, while returning to His own abode, entrusted me with this charge.
Yamarāja, the great controller of life after death, decides the living entities’ destinies in their next lives. He is surely among the most confidential representatives of the Lord. Such confidential posts are offered to great devotees of the Lord who are as good as His eternal associates in the spiritual sky. And because Vidura happened to be among them, the Lord, while returning to Vaikuṇṭha, left instructions for Vidura with Maitreya Muni. Generally the eternal associates of the Lord in the spiritual sky do not come to the material world. Sometimes they come, however, by the order of the Lord — not to hold any administrative post, but to associate with the Lord in person or to propagate the message of God in human society. Such empowered representatives are called śaktyāveśa-avatāras, or incarnations invested with transcendental power of attorney.
FAQs
It says Uddhava is eternally approved by the Lord and was personally instructed by Krishna in spiritual knowledge, showing his confidential status among the Lord’s devotees.
Vidura is seeking transcendental knowledge; by praising Uddhava as Krishna’s trusted devotee who received direct instruction, Vidura establishes why Uddhava’s guidance is authoritative for seekers like himself.
Seek spiritual understanding by approaching genuine devotees who carry the Lord’s message, and learn through humble inquiry and hearing rather than speculation.