SB 4.8.27 · Srimad Bhagavatam

Devanagari

नारद उवाच नाधुनाप्यवमानं ते सम्मानं वापि पुत्रक । लक्षयाम: कुमारस्य सक्तस्य क्रीडनादिषु ॥ २७ ॥

Verse text

nārada uvāca nādhunāpy avamānaṁ te sammānaṁ vāpi putraka lakṣayāmaḥ kumārasya saktasya krīḍanādiṣu

Synonyms

nāradaḥ uvāca — the great sage Nārada said ; na — not ; adhunā — just now ; api — although ; avamānam — insult ; te — unto you ; sammānam — offering respects ; vā — or ; api — certainly ; putraka — my dear boy ; lakṣayāmaḥ — I can see ; kumārasya — of boys like you ; saktasya — being attached ; krīḍana — ādiṣu — to sports and frivolities .

Translation

The great sage Nārada 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?

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Nārada said: O child! Since you are a young boy attached to playing, I do not see at this time that you should feel honored or disrespected.

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 Mahārāja, the kṣatriya spirit was so strong that he could not tolerate a slight insult from his stepmother which injured his kṣatriya prestige.