FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.1.41

सौम्यानुशोचे तमध:पतन्तं भ्रात्रे परेताय विदुद्रुहे य: । निर्यापितो येन सुहृत्स्वपुर्या अहं स्वपुत्रान् समनुव्रतेन ॥ ४१ ॥
saumyānuśoce tam adhaḥ-patantaṁ
[saumyaanushoche tam adhah-patantam]
bhrātre paretāya vidudruhe yaḥ
[bhraatre paretaaya vidudruhe yah]
niryāpito yena suhṛt sva-puryā
[niryaapito yena suhrit sva-puryaa]
ahaṁ sva-putrān samanuvratena
[aham sva-putraan samanuvratena]
Word-for-word
saumya — O gentle one anuśoce — I lament tam — him adhaḥ-patantam — gliding down bhrātre — on his brother’s paretāya — death vidudruhe — revolted against yaḥ — one who niryāpitaḥ — driven out yena — by whom suhṛt — well-wisher sva-puryāḥ — from his own house aham — myself sva-putrān — with his own sons samanu-vratena — accepting the same line of action.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
saumyānuśoce tam adhaḥ-patantaṁ
saumya
O gentle one
anuśoce
I lament
tam
him
adhaḥ-patantam
gliding down
bhrātre paretāya vidudruhe yaḥ
bhrātre
on his brother’s
paretāya
death
vidudruhe
revolted against
yaḥ
one who
niryāpito yena suhṛt sva-puryā
niryāpitaḥ
driven out
yena
by whom
suhṛt
well-wisher
sva-puryāḥ
from his own house
ahaṁ sva-putrān samanuvratena
aham
myself
sva-putrān
with his own sons
samanu-vratena
accepting the same line of action.
O gentle one, I simply lament for him [Dhṛtarāṣṭra] who rebelled against his brother after death. By him I was driven out of my own house, although I am his sincere well-wisher, because he accepted the line of action adopted by his own sons.
Purport

Vidura did not ask about the welfare of his elder brother because there was no chance of his well-being, only news of his gliding down to hell. Vidura was a sincere well-wisher for Dhṛtarāṣṭra, and he had a thought about him in the corner of his heart. He lamented that Dhṛtarāṣṭra could rebel against the sons of his dead brother Pāṇḍu and that he could drive him (Vidura) out of his own house on the dictation of his crooked sons. In spite of these actions, Vidura never became an enemy of Dhṛtarāṣṭra but continued to be his well-wisher, and at the last stage of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s life, it was Vidura only who proved to be his real friend. Such is the behavior of a Vaiṣṇava like Vidura: he desires all good, even for his enemies.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
O Uddhava! I lament for Dhṛtarāṣṭra, who will fall to hell. He committed violence against his dead brother by afflicting the Pāṇḍavas, and he drove me, his friend, out of the palace, following the advice of his sons. O Uddhava! I do not ask about the welfare of blind Dhṛtarāṣṭra, but lament for his eventual fall to hell. O Uddhava (saumya)! He committed violence against his dead (paretāya) brother by violence against his brother’s sons, the Pāṇḍavas. He committed violence against me, his living brother, by driving me out of the palace, though I was his well wisher (suhṛt).
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Even after being driven from your own home by family, a Vaisnava continues to wish them well. The test of devotion is not how you treat those who love you, but how you speak of those who wronged you.
Reflection Questions
  • Whom do you lament for rather than resent, and what does that tell you about your heart's progress?
  • Whose name do you speak with venom when you should be speaking with sorrow and prayer?
📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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