ॐ श्रीपरमात्मने नमः
श्रीमद्भागवतमहापुराणम्
श्रीमद्भागवतम् - तृतीयस्कन्धः
॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
॥ तृतीयस्कन्धः ॥
॥ प्रथमोऽध्यायः - १ ॥
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Śrīmad Bhāgavata Mahāpurāṇa
Discourse I
Meeting of Uddhava and Vidura (Preamble)
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श्रीशुक उवाच ।
एवमेतत्पुरा पृष्टो मैत्रेयो भगवान् किल ।
क्षत्त्रा वनं प्रविष्टेन त्यक्त्वा स्वगृहमृद्धिमत् ॥ १॥
यद्वा अयं मन्त्रकृद्वो भगवानखिलेश्वरः ।
पौरवेन्द्रगृहं हित्वा प्रविवेशात्मसात्कृतम् ॥ २॥
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Śrī Śuka said : It was this very question that Vidura asked the worshipful sage Maitreya in the past, when the former had retired to the forest quitting his prosperous home. (1)
It was at Vidura's residence that Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Ruler of the universe, who happened to visit Hastināpura as an ambassador of your forefathers (the Pāṇḍavas), called as if it were His own house, refusing the hospitality of the Paurava king (Duryodhana). (2) (1-2)
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राजोवाच ।
कुत्र क्षत्तुर्भगवता मैत्रेयेणास सङ्गमः ।
कदा वा सह संवाद एतद्वर्णय नः प्रभो ॥ ३॥
न ह्यल्पार्थोदयस्तस्य विदुरस्यामलात्मनः ।
तस्मिन् वरीयसि प्रश्नः साधुवादोपबृंहितः ॥ ४॥
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The king said : Where did Vidura's meeting with the worshipful Maitreya take place and when did he have a talk with him ? Kindly tell me all this, my lord. (3)
Surely the question which the pure-hearted Vidura asked of the noblest sage Maitreya could not have been of small consequence, particularly when it was honoured with a reply by a saint of no mean order. (4) (3-4)
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सूत उवाच ।
स एवमृषिवर्योऽयं पृष्टो राज्ञा परीक्षिता ।
प्रत्याह तं सुबहुवित्प्रीतात्मा श्रूयतामिति ॥ ५॥
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Sūta continued : Questioned as above by king Parīksit and much delighted at heart over this, the all-wise Śuka, the foremost of sages, said in reply : "Listen !" (5) (5)
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श्रीशुक उवाच ।
यदा तु राजा स्वसुतानसाधून्
पुष्णन्नधर्मेण विनष्टदृष्टिः ।
भ्रातुर्यविष्ठस्य सुतान् विबन्धून्
प्रवेश्य लाक्षाभवने ददाह ॥ ६॥
यदा सभायां कुरुदेवदेव्याः
केशाभिमर्शं सुतकर्म गर्ह्यम् ।
न वारयामास नृपः स्नुषायाः
स्वास्रैर्हरन्त्याः कुचकुङ्कुमानि ॥ ७॥
द्यूते त्वधर्मेण जितस्य साधोः
सत्यावलम्बस्य वनागतस्य ।
न याचतोऽदात्समयेन दायं
तमो जुषाणो यदजातशत्रोः ॥ ८॥
यदा च पार्थप्रहितः सभायां
जगद्गुरुर्यानि जगाद कृष्णः ।
न तानि पुंसाममृतायनानि
राजोरु मेने क्षतपुण्यलेशः ॥ ९॥
यदोपहूतो भवनं प्रविष्टो
मन्त्राय पृष्टः किल पूर्वजेन ।
अथाह तन्मन्त्रदृशां वरीयान्
यन्मन्त्रिणो वैदुरिकं वदन्ति ॥ १०॥
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Śrī Śuka proceeded : You know how king Dhṛtarāṣṭra, who was not only blind but had also lost his right judgment and supported his wicked sons through unrighteousness (in their unrighteous ways), had his younger brother's fatherless sons (Yudhiṣṭhira and others) lodged in a house of lac and the same set on fire. (6)
Nay, when in open court his second son (Duḥśāsana) dragged by the hair Dhṛtarāṣṭra's own daughter-in-law and the spouse of king Yudhiṣṭhira (queen Draupadi), whose tears washed off the saffron painted on her bosom (she being covered by a single cloth), the king failed to stop that abominable act of his son. (7)
The guileless king Yudhiṣṭhira, who was devoted to truth and regarded none as his enemy, was worsted in a gambling bout by unfair means (and sent in exile to the forest for a period of thirteen years); but when (on expiry of the term of exile) he returned from the forest, and asked back his share according to the terms of the agreement, Duryodhana refused to part with it, blinded as he was by infatuation. (8)
When Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Preceptor of the universe, was sent by Yudhiṣṭhira to the Kaurava court, He spoke there words which were full of nectar to His devotees (Bhiṣma and others); but the king (Duryodhana) attached no importance to them, since all his stock of merits had been exhausted. (9)
Again, when, invited by his elder brother (Dhṛtarāṣṭra), Vidura entered the latter's private chamber and was asked to give his advice, that crest-jewel of wise counsellors gave a piece of advice, which politicians still speak of (with reverence) as 'Viduraniti' (the Counsel of Vidura). (10) (6-10)
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अजातशत्रोः प्रतियच्छ दायं
तितिक्षतो दुर्विषहं तवागः ।
सहानुजो यत्र वृकोदराहिः
श्वसन् रुषा यत्त्वमलं बिभेषि ॥ ११॥
पार्थांस्तु देवो भगवान्मुकुन्दो
गृहीतवान् सक्षितिदेवदेवः ।
आस्ते स्वपुर्यां यदुदेवदेवो
विनिर्जिताशेषनृदेवदेवः ॥ १२॥
स एष दोषः पुरुषद्विडास्ते
गृहान् प्रविष्टो यमपत्यमत्या ।
पुष्णासि कृष्णाद्विमुखो गतश्रीः
त्यजाश्वशैवं कुलकौशलाय ॥ १३॥
इत्यूचिवांस्तत्र सुयोधनेन
प्रवृद्धकोपस्फुरिताधरेण ।
असत्कृतः सत्स्पृहणीयशीलः
क्षत्ता सकर्णानुजसौबलेन ॥ १४॥
क एनमत्रोपजुहाव जिह्मं
दास्याः सुतं यद्बलिनैव पुष्टः ।
तस्मिन् प्रतीपः परकृत्य आस्ते
निर्वास्यतामाशु पुराच्छ्वसानः ॥ १५॥
स इत्थमत्युल्बणकर्णबाणैः
भ्रातुः पुरो मर्मसु ताडितोऽपि ।
स्वयं धनुर्द्वारि निधाय मायां
गतव्यथोऽयादुरुमानयानः ॥ १६॥
स निर्गतः कौरवपुण्यलब्धो
गजाह्वयात्तीर्थपदः पदानि ।
अन्वाक्रमत्पुण्यचिकीर्षयोर्व्यां
स्वधिष्ठितो यानि सहस्रमूर्तिः ॥ १७॥
पुरेषु पुण्योपवनाद्रिकुञ्जे-
ष्वपङ्कतोयेषु सरित्सरःसु ।
अनन्तलिङ्गैः समलङ्कृतेषु
चचार तीर्थायतनेष्वनन्यः ॥ १८॥
गां पर्यटन्मेध्यविविक्तवृत्तिः
सदाऽऽप्लुतोऽधःशयनोऽवधूतः ।
अलक्षितः स्वैरवधूतवेषो
व्रतानि चेरे हरितोषणानि ॥ १९॥
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Vidura said, "Return the share of Yudhiṣṭhira, who regards none as his enemy and who has been tolerating the wrongs done by you, even though they are hard to bear. He is followed by Bhīma, whom you are terribly afraid of, and who with his younger brothers (Arjuna and others) is hissing in fury as a serpent. (11)
The cause of the Pāṇḍavas (the sons of Pṛthā) has been espoused by Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa (the Bestower of Liberation) Himself, who is adored as a deity by Yādava chiefs, who is staying at present in His own capital (Dwārakā) having conquered big sovereigns, and who has all the Brāhmaṇas and gods on His side. (12)
It is evil incarnate that has entered your house in the person of Duryodhana, whom you are fostering as a son and who is an enemy of the Supreme Person (Śrī Kṛṣṇa). That is why you too have turned your face against Śrī Kṛṣṇa and lost your splendour. Therefore, in the interest of your race, abandon this unlucky fellow at once." (13)
Vidura had a disposition which was coveted even by saints. But, when he uttered these words on that spot, the anger of Duryodhana and his companions—Karṇa, Duḥśāsana (Duryodhana's younger brother) and Śakuni (son of Subala and Duryodhana's maternal uncle)—knew no bounds. Their lips began to quiver and Duryodhana insultingly interposed:—(14)
"Who has called this crooked son of a maid-servant here? Hostilely disposed towards the master (myself) on whose crumbs he has grown fat, he works for the enemy's cause. Although his life may be spared, he should be banished from my capital at once." (15)
Cut to the quick by these most poignant words, which pierced his ears like shafts, in the presence of his brother (king Dhṛtarāṣṭra), but recognizing the greatness of the Lord's Māyā (deluding potency) Vidura did not feel the least perturbed in mind and quietly left the palace himself, depositing his bow at the gate. (16)
Vidura, whose birth in the race of Kurus had been secured as a result of great merit (who was an acquisition to the race of Kuru), departed from Hastināpura and, with a view to acquiring religious merit, undertook a pilgrimage to all holy places on the earth's surface, sacred to the Lord whose feet are ever hallowed, and where the Lord resides in a thousand and one forms (images). (17)
Unaccompanied by anyone else, he visited on foot cities, sacred groves, mountains, bowers, rivers and lakes containing limpid water and holy places graced with the Lord's images. (18)
He perambulated the earth in the garb of a recluse, so that he could not be recognized by his own people, lived on pure food such as fruits etc., dropped from trees, bathed in all sacred waters without exception, slept on the ground, never made his toilet, and observed vows that pleased Śrī Hari.(19) (11-19)
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इत्थं व्रजन्भारतमेव वर्षं
कालेन यावद्गतवान्प्रभासम् ।
तावच्छशास क्षितिमेकचक्रा-
मेकातपत्रामजितेन पार्थः ॥ २०॥
तत्राथ शुश्राव सुहृद्विनष्टिं
वनं यथा वेणुजवह्निसंश्रयम् ।
संस्पर्धया दग्द्धमथानुशोचन्
सरस्वतीं प्रत्यगियाय तूष्णीम् ॥ २१॥
तस्यां त्रितस्योशनसो मनोश्च
पृथोरथाग्नेरसितस्य वायोः ।
तीर्थं सुदासस्य गवां गुहस्य
यच्छ्राद्धदेवस्य स आसिषेवे ॥ २२॥
अन्यानि चेह द्विजदेवदेवैः
कृतानि नानाऽऽयतनानि विष्णोः ।
प्रत्यङ्गमुख्याङ्कितमन्दिराणि
यद्दर्शनात्कृष्णमनुस्मरन्ति ॥ २३॥
ततस्त्वतिव्रज्य सुराष्ट्रमृद्धं
सौवीरमत्स्यान् कुरुजाङ्गलांश्च ।
कालेन तावद्यमुनामुपेत्य
तत्रोद्धवं भागवतं ददर्श ॥ २४॥
स वासुदेवानुचरं प्रशान्तं
बृहस्पतेः प्राक्तनयं प्रतीतम् ।
आलिङ्ग्य गाढं प्रणयेन भद्रं
स्वानामपृच्छद्भगवत्प्रजानाम् ॥ २५॥
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While he was yet travelling in the land of Bhāratavarṣa and reached Prabhāsa (near Dwārakā), king Yudhiṣṭhira (son of Pṛthā) had established himself, with the help of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, as the universal and undisputed sovereign of the entire globe. (20)
There (at Prabhāsa) he heard how his kinsmen (the Kauravas) had perished due to mutual jealousy even as a thicket of bamboos is consumed by fire produced by the friction of one bamboo against another. Grieving over the holocaust, therefore, he quietly repaired to the bank of the Saraswati where it flows in a westerly direction. (21)
On the bank of that river he (visited and ) stayed at (eleven) different spots—severally sacred to the memory of the sages Trita, Uśanā (the father of Śukrācārya) and Asita, Śwāyambhuva Manu, king Pṛthu, the god of fire, the wind-god, king Sudāsa, the cows, Guha (god Kārtikeya, the eldest son of Lord Śiva) and king Śrāddhadeva (Vaivaswata Manu)—and many other sanctuaries in this area, consecrated to Lord Viṣṇu, founded by holy sages and gods and containing temples that bore on their domes the mark of Sudarśana, the chief of His weapons, the very sight of which reminded one of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. (22-23)
Journeying thence through the prosperous land of Saurāṣṭra and the kingdoms of Sauvīra, Matsya and Kuru-Jāṅgala, he reached in due course the bank of the Yamunā, where he came across Uddhava, another great devotee of the Lord. (24)
Vidura fondly clasped in close embrace this celebrated servant of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa (son of Vasudeva)—who had attained perfect serenity of mind and was an erstwhile pupil of the sage Bṛhaspati (the preceptor of the gods)—and enquired of him the welfare of his relations (the Yādavas), the proteges of the Lord:—(25) (20-25)
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कच्चित्पुराणौ पुरुषौ स्वनाभ्य-
पाद्मानुवृत्त्येह किलावतीर्णौ ।
आसात उर्व्याः कुशलं विधाय
कृतक्षणौ कुशलं शूरगेहे ॥ २६॥
कच्चित्कुरूणां परमः सुहृन्नो
भामः स आस्ते सुखमङ्ग शौरिः ।
यो वै स्वसॄणां पितृवद्ददाति
वरान् वदान्यो वरतर्पणेन ॥ २७॥
कच्चिद्वरूथाधिपतिर्यदूनां
प्रद्युम्न आस्ते सुखमङ्ग वीरः ।
यं रुक्मिणी भगवतोऽभिलेभे
आराध्य विप्रान् स्मरमादिसर्गे ॥ २८॥
कच्चित्सुखं सात्वतवृष्णिभोज-
दाशार्हकाणामधिपः स आस्ते ।
यमभ्यषिञ्चच्छतपत्रनेत्रो
नृपासनाशां परिहृत्य दूरात् ॥ २९॥
कच्चिद्धरेः सौम्य सुतः सदृक्ष
आस्तेऽग्रणी रथिनां साधु साम्बः ।
असूत यं जाम्बवती व्रताढ्या
देवं गुहं योंऽबिकया धृतोऽग्रे ॥ ३०॥
क्षेमं स कच्चिद्युयुधान आस्ते
यः फाल्गुनाल्लब्धधनूरहस्यः ।
लेभेऽञ्जसाधोक्षजसेवयैव
गतिं तदीयां यतिभिर्दुरापाम् ॥ ३१॥
कच्चिद्बुधः स्वस्त्यनमीव आस्ते
श्वफल्कपुत्रो भगवत्प्रपन्नः ।
यः कृष्णपादाङ्कितमार्गपांसु-
ष्वचेष्टत प्रेमविभिन्नधैर्यः ॥ ३२॥
कच्चिच्छिवं देवकभोजपुत्र्या
विष्णुप्रजाया इव देवमातुः ।
या वै स्वगर्भेण दधार देवं
त्रयी यथा यज्ञवितानमर्थम् ॥ ३३॥
अपिस्विदास्ते भगवान्सुखं वो
यः सात्वतां कामदुघोऽनिरुद्धः ।
यमामनन्ति स्म ह शब्दयोनिं
मनोमयं सत्त्वतुरीयतत्त्वम् ॥ ३४॥
अपिस्विदन्ये च निजात्मदैव-
मनन्यवृत्त्या समनुव्रता ये ।
हृदीकसत्यात्मजचारुदेष्ण-
गदादयः स्वस्ति चरन्ति सौम्य ॥ ३५॥
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"The two Primal Persons (Śrī Balarāma and Śrī Kṛṣṇa) appeared (in human semblance) on this globe in response to the prayer of Brahmā, who was born of the very lotus that had sprung from the Lord's own navel. Having relieved the earth of its burden and brought delight to the whole world, are they doing well in the house of Śūrasena (the father of Vasudeva)? (26)
Dear Uddhava, is our brother-in-law (sister's husband)*, Vasudeva (son of Śūrasena), quite happy—Vasudeva, who is the greatest friend and well-wisher of the Kurus, and who, like a father, liberally bestows on his sisters (Kunti and others) the gifts of their choice, bringing satisfaction (by offering rich presents) even to their husbands ? (27)
Again, dear friend, is that heroic Pradyumna, the generalissimo of the Yādava forces, quite well—Pradyumna, who was no other than the god of love in his previous incarnation and whom his mother Rukmiṇī secured from the Lord by propitiating the Brāhmaṇas? (28)
Is Ugrasena, the ruler of the Sātvatas, Vṛṣṇis, Bhojas and Dāśārhas, prospering—Ugrasena, whom the lotus-eyed Lord (Śrī Kṛṣṇa) installed (on the throne of Mathurā), even though he had stood aloof, having lost all hope of regaining the throne ? (29)
Is Śrī Hari's (Śrī Kṛṣṇa's) son, Sāmba, who is the equal of his Father and the foremost of car-warriors, faring well, O gentle Uddhava—Sāmba, who is no other than the god Guha, whom Goddess Ambikā (Pārvatī) bore in Her womb in the past and to whom Jāmbavatī (the daughter of Jāmbavān and one of the eight principal consorts of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa) gave birth (once again) as a fruit of her religious observances? (30)
Is that Yuyudhāna (Sātyaki) quite happy, who received the secrets of bowmanship from Phālguna (Arjuna) and who easily secured through the mere service of Lord Adhokṣaja (Śrī Kṛṣṇa) the position of His devotees, which is difficult of attainment even for ascetics ? (31)
Is the wise and sinless Akrūra (son of Śwaphalka) quite healthy—Akrūra who is devoted to the Lord and who, beside himself with love, rolled about in the dust of the road marked with the footprints of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa ? (32)
Is all well with Devakī (daughter of Devaka, the chief of the Bhoja clan of Kṣatriyās), who is as good a mother of Lord Viṣṇu as Aditi (the mother of the gods), and who bore the Lord in her womb even as the three Vedas bear the extensive ritual (the elaborate details and procedure of the various sacrifices) as their import ? (33)
Is the divine Aniruddha (the grandson of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa) perfectly all right—Aniruddha, who grants the desires of His worshippers like you and whom the scriptures have declared as the source of the Vedas and the deity presiding over the mind (Manas), which constitutes the fourth part of the inner sense (which is a composite of four elements, viz., Citta, Ahaṅkāra, Buddhi and Manas)? (34)
And are other people such as Hṛdika, (a Yādava chief), the sons of Satyabhāmā, Cārudeṣṇa (Pradyumna's real brother) and Gada (a brother of Śrī Kṛṣṇa) faring well, O gentle Uddhava—people who are exclusively and fully devoted to Śrī Kṛṣṇa (the lord of their heart)? (35) (26-35)
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अपि स्वदोर्भ्यां विजयाच्युताभ्यां
धर्मेण धर्मः परिपाति सेतुम् ।
दुर्योधनोऽतप्यत यत्सभायां
साम्राज्यलक्ष्म्या विजयानुवृत्त्या ॥ ३६॥
किं वा कृताघेष्वघमत्यमर्षी
भीमोऽहिवद्दीर्घतमं व्यमुञ्चत् ।
यस्याङ्घ्रिपातं रणभूर्न सेहे
मार्गं गदायाश्चरतो विचित्रम् ॥ ३७॥
कच्चिद्यशोधा रथयूथपानां
गाण्डीवधन्वोपरतारिरास्ते ।
अलक्षितो यच्छरकूटगूढो
मायाकिरातो गिरिशस्तुतोष ॥ ३८॥
यमावुतस्वित्तनयौ पृथायाः
पार्थैर्वृतौ पक्ष्मभिरक्षिणीव ।
रेमात उद्दाय मृधे स्वरिक्थं
परात्सुपर्णाविव वज्रिवक्त्रात् ॥ ३९॥
अहो पृथापि ध्रियतेऽर्भकार्थे
राजर्षिवर्येण विनापि तेन ।
यस्त्वेकवीरोऽधिरथो विजिग्ये
धनुर्द्वितीयः ककुभश्चतस्रः ॥ ४०॥
सौम्यानुशोचे तमधःपतन्तं
भ्रात्रे परेताय विदुद्रुहे यः ।
निर्यापितो येन सुहृत्स्वपुर्या
अहं स्वपुत्रान्समनुव्रतेन ॥ ४१॥
सोऽहं हरेर्मर्त्यविडम्बनेन
दृशो नृणां चालयतो विधातुः ।
नान्योपलक्ष्यः पदवीं प्रसादा-
च्चरामि पश्यन् गतविस्मयोऽत्र ॥ ४२॥
नूनं नृपाणां त्रिमदोत्पथानां
महीं मुहुश्चालयतां चमूभिः ।
वधात्प्रपन्नार्तिजिहीर्षयेशो-
ऽप्युपैक्षताघं भगवान्कुरूणाम् ॥ ४३॥
अजस्य जन्मोत्पथनाशनाय
कर्माण्यकर्तुर्ग्रहणाय पुंसाम् ।
नन्वन्यथा कोऽर्हति देहयोगं
परो गुणानामुत कर्मतन्त्रम् ॥ ४४॥
तस्य प्रपन्नाखिललोकपाना-
मवस्थितानामनुशासने स्वे ।
अर्थाय जातस्य यदुष्वजस्य
वार्तां सखे कीर्तय तीर्थकीर्तेः ॥ ४५॥
इति श्रीमद्भागवते महापुराणे पारमहंस्यां संहितायां
तृतीयस्कन्धे विदुरोद्धवसंवादे प्रथमोऽध्यायः ॥ ३.१॥
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"Does king Yudhiṣṭhira (who is virtue personified) protect the law according to the principles of righteousness with the help of his two arms—Vijaya (Arjuna) and Acyuta (Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa)—Yudhiṣṭhira, at the sight of whose imperial fortune and attendant glory in the court built by Maya (the architect of the demons) Duryodhana burned with jealousy ? (36)
Has Bhīma, who is most relentless like a serpent, given up his long-standing grudge against those who wronged him, viz., the Kauravas—Bhīma, whose tread the earth could not bear as he moved about on the battle-field revolving his mace in a variety of ways (while actually engaged in a fight)? (37)
Is Arjuna (the wielder of the Gaṇḍiva bow), the most renowned of leading car-warriors, now at peace with his enemies, (having subdued or destroyed them all)—Arjuna, who won the pleasure of Lord Śiva, disguised as a Kirāta (hunter) beyond all recognition, by hiding Him with a volley of his arrows ? (38)
Do the twin brothers (Nakula and Sahadeva), the foster-sons of Pṛthā—who enjoy the protection of their half-brothers (the sons of Pṛthā) even as the eye-balls are protected by the eyelashes—rejoice after recovering their ancestral share from the enemy's hands through the arbitrament of war as though a pair of Garuḍas had snatched nectar from the mouth of Indra (the wielder of a thunderbolt)? (39)
Oh, Pṛthā (my sister-in-law) is surviving merely for the sake of her children, though bereaved of Paṇḍu (that foremost of royal sages), who, a matchless hero and foremost car-warrior that he was, had conquered all the four quarters with no other companion than his bow. (40)
I feel concerned, O gentle Uddhava, for that brother of mine (Dhṛtarāṣṭra), who is paving his way for hell, inasmuch as he wronged his own deceased half-brother (Paṇḍu) in the person of his sons (the Paṇḍavas), and who banished me, his well-wisher, from his capital (Hastināpura), having yielded completely to the will of his sons. (41)
I am, however, not the least surprised or sorry (for his behaviour towards me); for it is Śrī Hari (Śrī Kṛṣṇa), the Supreme Ruler (of this universe), who bewilders the intellect of men by following the ways of mortals. I am, therefore, moving about in this world, unperceived by others, observing His glory by His grace. (42)
The Lord overlooked (for the time being) the wrongdoings of the Kauravas, though capable of punishing them then and there; for He sought to relieve the distress of those who had taken shelter in Him by exterminating with them other monarchs too, who in their threefold pride (of birth, wealth and learning) had strayed from the path of virtue and shook the earth with their armies again and again. (43)
The birth and doings of the Lord, who is really birthless and actionless, are only for the extirpation of the wrongdoers as well as for attracting people towards Himself; otherwise (to say nothing of the Lord) what man that has transcended the three Guṇas(modes of Prakṛti) would tie himself down to a (corporeal) body or pursue an elaborate course of activity ? (44)
Therefore, O friend, tell me the news about that Lord of sacred renown who, though devoid of birth, has descended in the race of Yadu for the good of all the guardians of the different spheres who sought refuge in Him, as well of such other devotees as are (ever) at His beck and call. (45)
Vasudeva had a number of wives, one of them—Pauravī by name—being a cousin of Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Hence Vidura speaks of Vasudeva as his sister's husband.
Thus ends the first discourse in Book Three, consisting of a dialogue between Vidura and Uddhava, of the great and glorious Bhāgavata-Purāṇa, otherwise known as the Paramahamsa-Sarhhitā.* (36-45)
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