RRMB -6

The Reason the Wise and Great Vidura was born as a Shudra

BK I.63

There was a rishi of great repute by the name of Animāṇḍvya. He was a Vedic scholar. Once he was accused of theft, though he was really innocent. He was impaled. Hen this happened he summoned Dharma and said, “When I was a mere lad I did once pierce a fly which was on a blade of grass. That was I sin and I remember that. To make up for that I have practiced penances thousands of time. Have I not paid enough for that one sin? By punishing me, O Dharma, you have sinned. I therefore curse you to be born as a Shūdra.”

 Because of that curse Dharma was born of pure body as the learned Vidura of pure body.

Great and magnificent as the Epic is it is important to remember that it reflects the worldviews and values of a distant age.