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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.14.5
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A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
TEXT 5
- maitreya uvāca
- sādhu vīra tvayā pṛṣṭam
- avatāra-kathāṁ hareḥ
- yat tvaṁ pṛcchasi martyānāṁ
- mṛtyu-pāśa-viśātanīm
maitreyaḥMaitreya said uvācaMaitreya said — Maitreya said; sādhudevotee — devotee; vīraO warrior — O warrior; tvayāby you — by you; pṛṣṭaminquired — inquired; avatāratopics on the incarnation of the Lord-kathāmtopics on the incarnation of the Lord — topics on the incarnation of the Lord; hareḥof the Personality of Godhead — of the Personality of Godhead; yatthat which — that which; tvamyour good self — your good self; pṛcchasiasking me — asking me; martyānāmof those who are destined for death — of those who are destined for death; mṛtyuthe chain of birth and death-pāśathe chain of birth and death — the chain of birth and death; viśātanīmsource of liberation — source of liberation.
The great sage Maitreya said: O warrior, the inquiry made by you is just befitting a devotee because it concerns the incarnation of the Personality of Godhead. He is the source of liberation from the chain of birth and death for all those who are otherwise destined to die.
The great sage Maitreya addressed Vidura as a warrior not only because Vidura belonged to the Kuru family but because he was anxious to hear about the chivalrous activities of the Lord in His incarnations of Varāha and Nṛsiṁha. Because the inquiries concerned the Lord, they were perfectly befitting a devotee. A devotee has no taste for hearing anything mundane. There are many topics of mundane warfare, but a devotee is not inclined to hear them. The topics of the warfare in which the Lord engages do not concern the war of death but the war against the chain of māyā which obliges one to accept repeated birth and death. In other words, one who takes delight in hearing the war topics of the Lord is relieved from the chains of birth and death. Foolish people are suspicious of Kṛṣṇa's taking part in the Battle of Kurukṣetra, not knowing that His taking part insured liberation for all who were present on the battlefield. It is said by Bhīṣmadeva that all who were present on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra attained their original spiritual existences after death. Therefore, hearing the war topics of the Lord is as good as any other devotional service.