Bheeshma, the eldest member of the Kuru family, undertook to hold the reins of governance, but only as a custodian. He appointed Vidura as chief counsellor to Dhritarashtra because he was known for his sense of justice, righteousness and profound wisdom, even though he was born to a maidservant in the royal family.
To understand the genesis of Vidura’s wisdom, it is necessary to know his background. Years ago, there lived, in a hermitage, sage Mandavya, who was renowned for his spiritual prowess acquired through assiduous study of the scriptures, tapas and quest for truth. No wonder that even the gods envied him. One day, as he was deeply absorbed in meditation, a short distance away from his hermitage, some soldiers arrived in hot pursuit of a band of robbers who had stolen diamonds and jewels from the royal treasury. The chief of these soldiers asked the sage, who was deep in meditation, if he had seen any robbers around. But lost to the world around him, the sage did not respond at all.
‘Why don’t you speak up?’ asked the chief in an insolent tone. Still getting no response, the soldiers entered the hermitage and saw the entire booty in a corner. The soldiers were now convinced that the sage himself was an accomplice who had let the robbers escape.
The chief of the soldiers reported the matter to the king, putting the blame squarely on Mandavya, who was branded a charlatan in the guise of a Brahmin. Infuriated, the king ordered the sage to be impaled on a spear, and abandoned in that state. But to the utter amazement of the king and his soldiers, the sage did not display any sign of pain because he had remained all this time in a yogic trance.
When some other sages happened to pass by, they asked Mandavya how he had ended up in such a predicament. He replied that he had no idea whatsoever why he had been impaled.
The king now felt mystified as to how any human being could endure so much agony without being conscious of it. There must be some power shielding this man, the king thought. Suddenly terrified that he might provoke divine wrath for torturing an innocent man, he fell at the sage’s feet and sought his mercy and forgiveness. But the sage did not respond.
Mandavya then went to Lord Dharma, who was known for his dispensation of justice. To Mandavya, the Lord said, ‘I am utterly perplexed to see someone tortured for no fault of his. You are indeed innocent but…’ Dharma trailed off, as if he were now pondering over the matter. Then he resumed, ‘Maybe this has happened because you had hurt some bees or birds in your childhood.’
‘That is an ingenious way of explaining away a serious matter,’ Mandavya responded, with an unmistakable ring of petulance in his voice. ‘Seated there on your celestial throne, you seem to be far removed from the stark reality of the human condition. Your comment makes light of the problem of crime and punishment. As for myself, there was no crime, only gruesome punishment.’ Then, summoning his spiritual powers, more effective than those held by even the gods, Mandavya inflicted a curse on Lord Dharma: ‘I curse you to descend on the earth and live there like a mortal to understand the complex relationship between truth and falsehood.’
Thus appeared on the earth Vidura, born to Ambika’s maidservant, but as an incarnation of Lord Dharma. He was recognized and admired by everyone as an icon of wisdom and righteousness.