In the great palace of Hastinapura lived a man named Vidura. He was the wisest counsellor in the whole kingdom — but the proud princes never let him forget that his mother had been a serving-maid. By the rules of the court, he could never sit on the throne, never wear a crown, never be called a prince. To many, his birth made him "lower."

But Vidura did not measure himself by the court's rules. His heart belonged entirely to Krishna.

One day Krishna himself came to Hastinapura, sent to make peace between the quarrelling cousins. Duryodhana, the eldest prince, was overjoyed. He prepared a feast fit for a god — gold platters heaped with rich food, the finest the kingdom could offer — and proudly invited Krishna to dine at the royal table.

Krishna smiled and shook his head. "Thank you, Duryodhana," he said. "But I will eat at Vidura's house tonight."

The whole court fell silent. The Lord of all, choosing the home of the maid's son over the prince's golden feast?

At Vidura's small, plain house there was no banquet. There was only simple food — humble greens, a little rice, what an honest man could offer. But Vidura served it with hands that trembled with love, and tears of joy ran down his face that Krishna had come at all.

Krishna ate every bite, slowly, savouring it, as happy as a child. "This," he said, "is the finest meal in Hastinapura. Not because of what is on the plate — but because of the love it is given with."

For Krishna does not weigh a person by their birth, or their rank, or the gold on their table. He had told Arjuna plainly: whoever takes refuge in him — woman or man, prince or servant, rich or poor — reaches the very highest goal. The door is open to everyone. Vidura, the maid's son whom the court looked down upon, was honoured above all the princes that night, simply because he loved God with his whole heart.