CHAPTER EIGHT
Dhruva Mahārāja Leaves Home for the Forest
TEXT 1
मैत्रेय उवाच
सनकाद्या नारदश्च ऋभुर्हसोऽरुणिर्यतिः । ·
नैते गृहान् ब्रह्मसुता ह्यावसन्नूर्ध्वरेतसः ॥ १ ॥
maitreya uvāca sanakādyā nāradaś ca ṛbhur haṁso 'ruṇir yatiḥ naite gṛhān brahma-sutā hy āvasann ūrdhva-retasaḥ
maitreyaḥ uvāca—Maitreya said; sanaka-ādyāḥ—those headed by Sanaka; nāradaḥ—Nārada; ca—and; ṛbhuḥ—Ṛbhu; haṁsaḥ—Haṁsa; aruṇiḥ—Aruṇi; yatiḥ—Yati; na—not; ete—all these; gṛhān—at home; brahma-sutāḥ—sons of Brahmā; hi—certainly; āvasan—did live; ūrdhva-retasaḥ—unadulterated celibates.
TRANSLATION
The great sage Maitreya said: The four great Kumāra sages headed by Sanaka, as well as Nārada, Ṛbhu, Haṁsa, Aruṇi and Yati, all sons of Brahmā, did not live at home, but became ūrdhva-reta or naiṣṭhika-brahmacārīs, unadulterated celibates.
PURPORT
The system of  brahmacarya  has been current since the birth of Brahmā. A section of the population, especially male, did not marry at all. Instead of allowing their semina to be driven downwards, they used to lift the
279