Mandavya's Curse The rishi
Mandavya cursed
Yama that he would be born as a maid's son for getting him
impaled without a valid reason. He was born in the mortal world as Vidura.
Birth and early life Vidura was born through
Niyoga between the sage
Vyasa and Parishrami, a handmaiden to the queens
Ambika and
Ambalika. Ambika first mated with Vyasa through the niyoga process but kept her eyes closed during the process because his appearance and power frightened her. As a result she gave birth to the blind Dhritarashtra. Later her sister Ambalika followed the same process with Vyasa, and knew to keep her eyes open. But she was pale with fear during the niyoga, and so gave birth to the albino Pandu. Finally the queens sent their maiden Parishrami in their place, who behaved appropriately during niyoga process and gave birth to the exceptional Vidura. But because his mother was a handmaiden rather than a queen, his status was always lower than his two half brothers. The queens were wives of king
Vichitravirya – the grandfather to the
Kauravas and
Pandavas who eventually fought each other in the Battle of Kurukshetra, the climax of the Mahabharata on the threshold of which the Bhagavad Gita was given by Krishna to the Pandava prince Arjuna. King Vichitravirya was also the adopted father of
Dhritarashtra and
Pandu. After
Krishna, Vidura was the most respected as an adviser by the Pandavas, whom he forewarned on various occasions of
Duryodhana's plots to exterminate them, such as Duryodhana's plan to burn them alive in the
house of lac or lacquer.
Game of dice Vidura tried to stop
Yudhishthira from playing the game of dice, but his efforts were of no use. Except the prince
Vikarna, Vidura was the only one who protested against the humiliation of
Draupadi in the Kaurava court. In that moment,
Duryodhana viciously rebuked Vidura, calling him ungrateful.
Dhritarashtra moved to rebuke Duryodhana for insulting their uncle, but, remembering Vidura saying that a
blind man cannot be king, holds his tongue, and instead reprimanded Duryodhana for insulting the
prime minister. It is that incident that Vidura brought up years later when he severed ties with the
Kurus and sided with the Pandavas at the onset of the
Kurukshetra war. Unlike
Bhishma,
Dronacharya,
Kripacharya, and
Karna, Vidura did not have an obligation to
Hastinapura or Duryodhana, but to his family. Hearing Dhritarashtra not acknowledge that relationship, Vidura felt compelled to side with
dharma and the Pandavas.
Krishna's visit According to
Krishna, Vidura was considered as Dharmaraja, which means the king of righteousness. Krishna respected Vidura for his devotion to people's welfare and his proficiency in every sphere of knowledge. When Krishna visited
Hastinapura as a peace emissary of the Pandavas, he shunned
Duryodhana's offer to stay in the royal palace, preferring instead the home of Vidura, on account of him being the only neutral man in the
Kaurava court. The reason Krishna stayed in Vidura's chambers for the night instead of Duryodhana's is due to the thoughts which were running through their heads and the difference between them. Duryodhana's intention was to heave luxury upon Krishna and convince him to join the Kaurava side. Sensing this intention, Krishna refused. Krishna knew the food that Vidura and his wife presented was presented with love and affection with no ulterior motive.
Kurukshetra War In the
Sanatsujatiya section of the
Mahabharata, shortly before the
Kurukshetra War began, Vidura invoked the sage Sanatsujata to answer
Dhritarashtra's questions about death. During Krishna's visit, Vidura repeatedly advised everyone in the Court to heed the messenger. Continuously irritated, Duryodhana bursts out, blaming the low-born mother of Vidura as the cause for him betraying the Kauravas who have been feeding him. In protest against verbal assault, Vidura resigned on the spot from the post of Prime minister and broke his bow, vowing not to take part in the
Kurukshetra War. Lesser known versions of Mahabharatha praise Vidura as an archer so great that if he had participated on the side of Kauravas in the war, the Pandavas would have been crushed. Vidura's bow was crafted by Vishnu himself, and it was destroyed at the behest of Vishnu's visit.
Death After the Kurukshetra War,
Yudhishthira became the emperor and upon his request, Vidura resumed his post as prime minister. After many years, Vidura accompanied
Dhritarashtra,
Gandhari and
Kunti who retired to the forests to live a simple life.
Sanjaya also accompanied them. When Yudhishthira went to forest after two years to visit them, he found Vidura's body to be lifeless. When he went near to the body, Vidura's spirit entered Yudhishthira's body and Yudhishthira realised that he and Vidura belonged to same entity,
Yama. Yudhishthira left Vidura's body in the wood as a heavenly voice told Yudhishthira not to cremate Vidura's body. == Vidura Niti ==