Dhruva

biographical name

This pastime occurred at the beginning of creation. Emperor Uttānapāda, who was born in the dynasty of Svāyambhuva Manu, had two queens. The elder was named Sunīti, while the younger, who controlled the king, was called Suruci. Sunīti had a son by the name of Dhruva. Child Dhruva was deprived of his father’s affection, and could not tolerate his stepmother’s tortures. Following his mother’s advice, he therefore went into the deep forest, where he became completely absorbed in very austere and difficult worship of the lotus-eyed Śrī Hari. His prayer was not to attain the Supreme, but to fulfill his material desire for a kingdom. However, by the mercy of Śrī Bhagavān, not only was his ambition for a kingdom fulfilled, but he also obtained pure bhakti. If one performs bhakti with undivided attention, even to fulfill a material desire, one always attains all auspiciousness in the end. Dhruva is an example of such an arthārthī