Text 27] Dhruva Maharaja Leaves Home for the Forest 303
from battle. It appears that the ksatriya blood within the body of Dhruva
Maharaja was naturally very active. If the brahminical, ksatriya or vaisya
culture is maintained in a family, naturally the sons and grandsons inherit
the spirit of the particular class. Therefore, according to the Vedic system,
the samskara, or the reformatory system, is maintained very rigidly. If one
fails to observe the reformatory measures current in the family, then
immediately he is degraded to a lower standard of life.
TEXT 27
AR, Tas
ayaa § an aft gaz |
SIT: FIA AHA seamey llrll
narada uvaca
nadhunapy avamanam te
sammanam vapi putraka
laksayamah kumarasya
saktasya kridanadisu

naradah uvaca—the great sage Narada said; na—not; adhuna—just now;
api—although; avaménam—insult; te—unto you; sammanam-— offering re-
spects; va—or;api—certainly;putraka—my dear boy ;laksayamah—I can see;
kumarasya—of boys like you; saktasya—being attached; kridana-adisu—to
sports and frivolities.

TRANSLATION

The great sage Narada told Dhruva: My dear boy, you are only a little
boy whose attachment is to sports and other frivolities. Why are you so
affected by words insulting your honor?

PURPORT

Ordinarily if a child is rebuked as a rascal or fool, he smiles and does not
take such insulting words very seriously. Similarly, if words of honor are
offered, he does not appreciate them. But in the case of Dhruva Maharaja,
the ksatriya spirit was so strong that he could not tolerate a slight insult
from his stepmother which injured his ksatriya prestige.
