Devārṣi Nārada, the divine messenger of the Lord, came to visit the kingdom of King Uttānapāda. He heard from the citizens that Dhruva, the first-born son of the king, had been insulted by his stepmother and, unable to tolerate her harsh words, had left his house and family and had gone to the forest to worship the Lord. Nārada was very astonished to hear that such a small child, only five years old, accustomed to a comfortable life in the palace and pampered by everyone, had taken up such a difficult life of austerity without any prior training.

While Śrī Nārada was thinking in this way, Dhruva was wandering around the forest without food or sleep, calling out continuously, “Where is my lotus-eyed Lord? Where is my lotus-eyed Lord?” Suddenly, Nārada Muni appeared before him and blessed him with great affection. By touching Dhruva’s head with his hand, Nārada removed all inauspiciousness. Nārada, upon seeing the boy, said to himself, “How amazing are the pride and intolerance of the kṣatriya [warrior] class! Although Dhruva is only a small boy, still now the harsh words of his stepmother are tormenting his heart.”

Nārada spoke to Dhruva, “My dear son, you are only a five-year-old child. At this age, children are supposed to be engaged in play. I cannot understand why you are taking all this so seriously. It is only natural that children are sometimes shown affection and sometimes scolded. If, at such a young age, you can discriminate between respect and abuse, then you should also not become confused or dissatisfied, because in this world each and every soul is getting happiness, distress, respect and abuse according to his own karma, and not because of someone else’s responsibility. No one can get the results of his actions without the consent of the Lord. When you realize this, you will be able to understand that whatever happens in this life is a result of the activities of your past life. Therefore, intelligent persons should never be dissatisfied with what they receive. Since all results of karma are under the control of the Lord, whether it be happiness or distress, it would be better for you to go back home and be content by staying there.”

After a short pause, Nārada continued, “If, however, you still have the desire to follow your mother’s instructions to worship Lord Hari to get His mercy, you should know that worship of the Supreme Lord is not something easy and accessible to all. Even the great munis must leave everything behind and renounce attachment to material things. With great determination and potency, they engage in the practice of yoga to reach samādhi. Striving for many lifetimes to attain success, they are still not able to know the Supreme Lord. Given this, how could a small child like you try to obtain the fruits of this worship within a short time? You should abandon this idea. Childhood or boyhood is not the proper time to engage in hari-bhajana [exclusive worship of the Lord] as the best time for the observance of religious duties is old age. I advise you to take an interest in transcendental topics when you become old, not now. If you can understand your happiness and distress to be the will or mercy of the Supreme Lord, then you will have no reason to feel dissatisfied. Every person is receiving the good and bad fruits of their karma. By simply meditating on Śrī Hari, one can find satisfaction and obtain liberation from the cycle of birth and death. If one sees someone more qualified than himself, he should develop affection for such a person and try to serve him; if one sees someone less qualified, he should show mercy toward him, and, if one sees someone equally qualified, he should make friends with him. In this way, one will never feel disappointed or sorrowful.”

After listening to the instructions of Nārada Muni, Dhruva only became more and more determined in his plan and said, “In happiness or distress a person’s mind can become confused. Your nature is such that, due to your mercy, you approach these confused persons to instruct them on how to find the way to peace. But, for me, this is very difficult to accept. I am impatient because that is the nature of the kṣatriyas—that is why my nature is that of intolerance. The arrows of the hard words of Suruci have pierced my heart. Therefore, your instructions cannot find a resting place in this pierced heart of mine. O brāhmaṇa! The supreme position in the three worlds, which could not be attained by my father or all my forefathers, is the position to which I wish to ascend. So please tell me an easy way to achieve this. You are so glorious—you have appeared from the very body of Lord Brahmā. You always sanctify the universe by moving here and there like the sun, while chanting the glories of Śrī Hari and playing on your vina.”

Nārada, the best of devotees, was very pleased to hear Dhruva speak like this and to see his firm resolve in wishing to worship Śrī Hari. At first, he wanted to test Dhruva’s faith and therefore he tried to discourage him from worshiping the Lord. But Dhruva replied, “If I do not attain the lotus feet of Śrī Hari, I will never return home again.” Seeing such strong faith, Nārada was pleased in his heart and blessed the young boy with his causeless mercy. He then gave him some instructions on an easy way to perform the worship of Śrī Hari.

Nārada said, “My dear Dhruva, up till now I have said so many things just to test your faith, but I am very satisfied to see your strong determination. You should understand that the instructions your mother Sunīti has given you are the best instructions possible. The practice of love and devotion to Śrī Hari is the topmost and most auspicious practice, and the only easy way to obtain the Lord’s lotus feet. For the Lord it is possible to fulfill all the desires of the living entity. If someone desires to obtain artha, kāma, dharma or mokṣa, the only way to reach his goal is to serve the lotus feet of Śrī Vishnu with full dedication. Therefore, my dear Dhruva, I am blessing you: may you obtain all success. Go to the bank of the River Yamunā, to the forest of Madhuvana—a place that is very dear to Śrī Hari. There you should bathe regularly three times a day in the pure waters of Kalindi, and after performing your duties you should sit down and practice prāṇayama by inhaling and exhaling your breath with full control. After quieting the restless mind and senses, make your consciousness steady and meditate on Śrī Vāsudeva, the guru of the entire world.”

Dhruva had completely surrendered himself unto the lotus feet of his guru, so he made a vow to execute his orders. Nārada gave him a special mantra and specific instructions on how to properly meditate on Śrī Hari, saying, “Here is how you are to meditate on the form of Śrī Hari. Śrī Hari’s body and countenance radiate contentment, satisfaction and the desire to bestow mercy. His nose is beautiful, His eyebrows are very attractive and also His neck is splendid. His person is the most wonderful. He is eternally young, His limbs are extremely attractive, and His lips and eyes have the hue of the rising sun. He is the only shelter for everyone, the supreme form of all that is to be achieved and He is an ocean of mercy. His eyes are full of love and the right side of His chest bears the mark of Śrīvatsa. His complexion is darkish like a new monsoon cloud, He wears a garland made of forest flowers and His four arms hold the conch-shell, disc, club and lotus. He is decorated by a crown, two beautiful earrings, bracelets and bangles. On His neck rests the Kauṣṭubha Jewel. His exquisite upper and lower garments are yellow, and He wears a waist belt and brilliant anklets at His feet. His form is the most beautiful thing one could ever see and increases the pleasure of the eyes of His pure devotees who long to serve Him. His beautiful feet, with nails shining like pearls, are resting on the lotus hearts of those who have the power of devotion. His sweet smile and affectionate looks are always bestowing mercy upon His devotees. Dear Dhruva, you should meditate on Śrī Hari, the greatest of all those who can give boons, with fully controlled mind and concentrated consciousness, as I have just told you. If you constantly meditate on the all-auspicious Lord, you will rapidly achieve a peace of mind you will never lose.”

Nārada continued, “O son of the king, I am now teaching you the most secret mantra: ‘oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya.’ If you chant this mantra sincerely for seven nights, you will be able to see the associates of the Lord moving in the sky. Those learned persons, who know the proper place and time, worship Lord Vāsudeva with this mantra and a full variety of pūjā articles. You are to perform the worship of Vāsudeva by, first of all, preparing the necessary paraphernalia: sanctified water, garlands, fruits and roots collected in the forest, nice darbha grass tips, garments made of soft leaves, bark from the plantain tree, and tulasī , which is very dear to the Lord. Try to make nice arrangements for the worship of the Deity of the Lord. If nothing else is available, you may even worship Lord Nārāyaṇa with only soil and water. When someone worships the Lord, he should do so with fixed consciousness, in a peaceful and mindful state, controlling his speech, eating moderately and avoiding foods not having the quality of goodness. The Lord has many inconceivable forms and potencies, by which He appears by His own sweet will, in different avatāras and līlās. You should meditate on the Lord, who is described by the most beautiful of prayers. You should likewise meditate on His avatāras and His inimitable character. If a person offers to the Lord a variety of articles such as perfume, sandal paste, betel nut, umbrella, fan etc., following the method shown by the great devotees of the past, then that worship should also be accompanied by the twelve-syllable mantra, a sound representation of the Lord. If someone humbly executes this method of worship with body, mind and words, offering his service with love and devotion, the Lord will always bless him with the fulfillment of all his desires—artha, kāma, dharma or mokṣa. But if that person is a surrendered soul who has taken shelter of the lotus feet of a pure devotee, then, for his service, the Lord will give him much more than what he desires: He will grant him prema-bhakti. That person, who has already tasted (and therefore is already fully satiated by) artha, kāma and dharma, who is not attracted by mokṣa, and who sees no particular value in jñāna or karma, will pursue with great determination the path of bhakti- yoga to obtain prema-bhakti itself through his worship of the Lord.”

After Nārada had taught him the authorized system for worshiping Śrī Hari, Dhruva offered his obeisances to the lotus feet of his guru and circumambulated him. He then went to the forest of Madhuvana (which is decorated by the marks of the Lord’s feet), where he would perform his austerity.

Meanwhile, Nārada went to the palace of King Uttānapāda and entered his apartments. The king welcomed the Devārṣi by offering him all appropriate paraphernalia and a seat. After that, he offered Nārada scented water and washed his feet. Nārada sat down comfortably and spoke as follows: “O king, I see from your forlorn expression that something has been troubling you for some time. What is the matter? Are you experiencing any problems with the pursuance of your artha, kāma or dharma? Does someone of your kith and kin suffer from any problem? Has anything dangerous or harmful happened?”

The king answered in a voice filled with sadness, “O Nārada, I am worried about my little child, a five-year-old boy, who is very intelligent. Oh, shame on me! I have been so cruel to send away this boy and his mother because of my attachment to a woman. O lord, that good-natured boy is now without shelter. Who will look after him and protect him? How much pain he must be feeling, walking on the forest paths which are so full of thorns! Who will provide food for him in the forest? O Devārṣi, I cannot find peace, thinking of the sad face of my hungry child. Do tell me, is he still alive, or has he been devoured by a tiger or another ferocious animal, unable as he is to protect himself? Just see how hard-hearted I have been! This child wanted to climb on my lap, motivated by his affection, but I did not even grant him a sweet word. I behaved like the lowest of men, because of attachment to my wife! O Devārṣi, my heart has become very restless thinking about my innocent son Dhruva.”

Upon hearing the tragic plight of the king, Nārada said, “Dear king, why are you lamenting for your son? No misfortune has befallen him, because he is protected by the devas. Very soon you will witness his return. Your son’s fame will be spread all over the universe. You are unaware of his glories and thus your sorrow is meaningless. O king, whatever opulence could not be attained by any king of the past, your Dhruva will obtain by worshiping the Lord. After achieving this, he will come back.” While listening to Nārada’s description of the glories of his son, King Uttānapāda became absorbed in thinking of Dhruva and soon forgot his undue attachment to the queen.

Meanwhile, Dhruva was performing his austere sādhana. He bathed in the water of the Yamunā and fasted all night. According to the instructions of Nārada, he concentrated upon controlling his senses and began to worship Śrī Hari, the Supreme Person. He began practicing a very intense austerity. In the first month he ate a small amount of bel or badari fruits every three days, just enough for his bare survival. In the second month he stopped eating fruits and instead, every six days, took only dry leaves that had fallen from trees, and started his service to the Lord from that point. In the third month, he began to take only water every nine days, while still meditating on the Lord with full consciousness. In the fourth month, for sustenance, he was only breathing air once every twelve days and, in this way, he conquered his breathing power, all the while meditating on Śrī Nārāyaṇa. In the fifth month, after conquering his prāṇa, Prince Dhruva stood still on one leg without moving, like a stick, and meditated on the Supreme with undivided attention. He silenced his mind and stopped all the activities of his knowledge-acquiring senses (eyes, ears, nose, tongue and skin) and their related objects of perception (form, sound, smell, taste and touch). In his heart, he gave up the desire for any object of attraction except the desire to behold the form of the Lord. Thus, he entered samādhi.

In this sublime trancelike state, Dhruva could not see anything except the form of the Lord. He was standing on his toes and the earth became so disturbed by his austerity that it started to shake and almost fell from its orbit. The violence of this motion was just like a small boat, rocking from one side to the other due to the movements of an elephant attempting to step into it. When Dhruva closed the doors of his prāṇa and started to meditate on Śrī Vishnu, the Soul of the universe, all the devas and the inhabitants of their planets started choking and felt intolerable suffering because of their inability to breathe. The devas could not understand the reason for their suffering. They decided to take shelter of Śrī Hari and started praying to Him to free them from their pain, saying, “O Lord, all the movable and immovable living entities are now breathless. We have never experienced anything like this before. You are our only Shelter and Protector. We take shelter of You, please save us from this suffocation.”

The Lord, moved by their earnest supplications, said, “O devas, this choking is caused by a child in Madhuvana Forest. I shall stop his tapasya. Dhruva, the son of Uttānapāda, has become so absorbed in his meditation upon Me that he cannot think of anything else. You should have no fear in this regard. Please go back to your respective abodes.” Indra and all the other devas were reassured by the words of Śrī Hari, and, after offering Him obeisances, they returned to their heavenly realm. Desirous of seeing His own devotee, the Lord mounted His divine carrier, Garuḍa, and flew to Madhuvana Forest.