496
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 4, Ch. 12]
TEXT 8
मैत्रेय उबाच
स राजराजेन वराय चोदितो
भुवो महामागवतो गहामतिः ।
हरौ स वत्रेऽचलितां स्मृतिं यथा
तरत्ययत्नेन दुरत्ययं तमः ॥ ८ ॥
maitreya uvāca
sa rāja-rājena varāya codito
dhruvo mahā-bhāgavato mahā-matiḥ
harau sa vavre 'calitām smṛtim yayā
taraty ayatnena duratyayam tamaḥ
maitreyaḥ uvāca —the great sage Maitreya said;  saḥ —he;  rāja-rājena —by the king of kings (Kuvera);  varāya —for benediction;  coditaḥ —being asked;  dhruvaḥ —Dhruva Mahārāja;  mahā-bhāgavataḥ —a first-class pure devotee;  mahā-matiḥ —most intelligent or thoughtful;  harau —unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead;  saḥ —he;  vavre —asked;  acalitām —unflinching;  smṛtim —remembrance;  yayā —by which;  tarati —crosses over;  ayatnena —without difficulty;  duratyayam —unsurpassable;  tamaḥ —nescience.
TRANSLATION
The great sage Maitreya continued: My dear Vidura, when thus asked to accept a benediction from Kuvera the Yakṣarāja [King of the Yakṣas], Dhruva Mahārāja, that most elevated pure devotee, who was an intelligent and thoughtful king, begged from him that he might have unflinching faith in and remembrance of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for thus a person can cross over the ocean of nescience very easily, although it is very difficult for others to cross.
PURPORT
According to the opinion of expert followers of Vedic rites, there are different types of benedictions in terms of religiosity, economic development, sense gratification and liberation. These four principles are known as  catur-vargas . Of all the  catur-vargas , the benediction of liberation is considered to be the highest in this material world. To be enabled to cross over material nescience is known as the highest  puruṣārtha , or benediction for the human being. But Dhruva Mahārāja wanted a benediction which surpasses even the highest  puruṣārtha , liberation. He wanted the benedic-