FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.5.1

श्री शुक उवाच द्वारि द्युनद्या ऋषभ: कुरूणां मैत्रेयमासीनमगाधबोधम् । क्षत्तोपसृत्याच्युतभावसिद्ध: पप्रच्छ सौशील्यगुणाभितृप्त: ॥ १ ॥
śrī-śuka uvāca
[shree-shuka uvaacha]
dvāri dyu-nadyā ṛṣabhaḥ kurūṇāṁ
[dvaari dyu-nadyaa rishabhah kuroonaam]
maitreyam āsīnam agādha-bodham
[maitreyam aaseenam agaadha-bodham]
kṣattopasṛtyācyuta-bhāva-siddhaḥ
[kshattopasrityaachyuta-bhaava-siddhah]
papraccha sauśīlya-guṇābhitṛptaḥ
[paprachcha sausheelya-gunaabhitriptah]
Word-for-word
śrī-śukaḥ uvāca — Śukadeva Gosvāmī said dvāri — at the source of dyu-nadyāḥ — the celestial river Ganges ṛṣabhaḥ — the best of the Kurus kurūṇām — of the Kurus maitreyam — unto Maitreya āsīnam — sitting agādha-bodham — of unfathomed knowledge kṣattā — Vidura upasṛtya — having approached nearer acyuta — the infallible Lord bhāva — character siddhaḥ — perfect papraccha — inquired sauśīlya — gentleness guṇa-abhitṛptaḥ — satisfied in transcendental qualities.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
śrī-śuka uvāca
śrī-śukaḥ uvāca
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said
dvāri dyu-nadyā ṛṣabhaḥ kurūṇāṁ
dvāri
at the source of
dyu-nadyāḥ
the celestial river Ganges
ṛṣabhaḥ
the best of the Kurus
kurūṇām
of the Kurus
maitreyam āsīnam agādha-bodham
maitreyam
unto Maitreya
āsīnam
sitting
agādha-bodham
of unfathomed knowledge
kṣattopasṛtyācyuta-bhāva-siddhaḥ
kṣattā
Vidura
upasṛtya
having approached nearer
acyuta
the infallible Lord
bhāva
character
siddhaḥ
perfect
papraccha sauśīlya-guṇābhitṛptaḥ
papraccha
inquired
sauśīlya
gentleness
guṇa-abhitṛptaḥ
satisfied in transcendental qualities.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: Vidura, the best amongst the Kuru dynasty, who was perfect in devotional service to the Lord, thus reached the source of the celestial Ganges river [Hardwar], where Maitreya, the great, fathomless learned sage of the world, was seated. Vidura, who was perfect in gentleness and satisfied in transcendence, inquired from him.
Purport

Vidura was already perfect due to his unalloyed devotion to the infallible Lord. The Lord and the living entities are all qualitatively the same by nature, but the Lord is quantitatively much greater than any individual living entity. He is ever infallible, whereas the living entities are prone to fall under the illusory energy. Vidura had already surpassed the fallible nature of the living entity in conditional life due to his being acyuta-bhāva, or legitimately absorbed in the devotional service of the Lord. This stage of life is called acyuta-bhāva-siddha, or perfection by dint of devotional service. Anyone, therefore, who is absorbed in the devotional service of the Lord is a liberated soul and has all admirable qualities. The learned sage Maitreya was sitting in a solitary place on the bank of the Ganges at Hardwar, and Vidura, who was a perfect devotee of the Lord and possessed all good transcendental qualities, approached him for inquiry.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Śukadeva said: Vidura, best of the Kurus, completely absorbed in Kṛṣṇa and satisfied with the gentle qualities of Maitreya, who had deep knowledge, approached Maitreya as he sat on the bank of the Gaṅgā at Haridvāra and asked him questions. In the Fifth Chapter Vidura asks about the creation of the universe of happiness and suffering. Maitreya describes the primary creation with elements and praises the Lord. Having described the nature of the shelter of creation, the aṅgī, the supreme Lord, in four chapters, the creation or sarga, which is composed of his aṅgas, is now described in detail. Maitreya was sitting on the bank of the Gaṅgā (dyu-nadyāḥ) at Haridvāra (dvāri). He was not engaged in material activities. There is another version with sauśīlya-guṇabhitṛptam. In this case the phrase means Maitreya was satisfied with Vidura’s gentle behavior.
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
The verse defines life's success by surrender, not by accumulation. What looks like 'giving up' from outside is, from inside, finally arriving at one's natural position. The verse anchors this in devotional service to the Lord.
Reflection Questions
  • What ordinary activity could you re-aim today so it becomes an offering rather than a transaction?
  • Where in your life are you still 'enjoying' the fruits of work you call devotional?
📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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