Among the characters in the Mahabharata, we find men like Duryodhana who are ambitious, envious and unjust in their thoughts, words and deeds. We find characters like Sanjaya, whose very name means ‘he who has won in the right way.’ Sanjaya had conquered his indriyas and had acquired jnana. Among the most virtuous ranks Vidura. We must not hesitate to take the advice of a person, even if he does not have a high position. Vidura was the son of a servant maid, and yet he was virtuous, whereas Dhritarashtra, the king, was not, said Kidambi Narayanan in a discourse.
Vidura never swayed from the path of dharma, and Dhritarashtra turned to him for consolation. Dhritarashtra sent Sanjaya to the Pandavas, with a request that they avoid war. But because of the adamance of Duryodhana, it was clear that war was going to break out soon. Dhritarashtra knew the war would go against his sons, and he was worried. Moreover, when Sanjaya returned, an anxious Dhritarashtra asked him what Krishna and the Pandavas had said. But Sanjaya said he would tell about that in court the next day, in the presence of the ministers and elders. Dhritarashtra was sleepless, and sent for Vidura. He asked Vidura for advice.
In the Mahabharata, Vidura’s advice to Dhritarashtra is covered in 450 slokas, and it is advice not just for Dhritarashtra, but it is advice for all of us, and has validity at all times. Vidura adhered to dharma and so was qualified to offer counsel. In the Rama avatara, the Lord adhered to dharma. Mareecha said, “RamO vigrahavAn dharmah - Rama is the embodiment of dharma.” In the Krishna avatara which comes later, the Lord talks about dharma. So, the Lord shows us the importance of keeping to dharma, before we preach dharma to others.