Text 27
nārada uvāca
nādhunāpy avamānaṁ te
sammānaṁ vāpi putraka
lakṣayāmaḥ kumārasya
saktasya krīḍanādiṣu
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.
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?
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.