Exams are around the corner !

It’s summertime and outdoors are very hot. You are not allowed to eat ice creams, watch your favourite cartoon, have long chats with your friends, eat out at weekends, attend your cricket coaching classes, or do any of the hundred other things you would rather do, except study! "Don’t waste time. Go to your room and study!" is the only command you seem to hear from your parents all the time.

Whew! It must be difficult being a child!

But think, won’t it be just great if you could put off all the things you want to do for just a few more days, concentrate on doing well in your exams, and have a whale of a time later on? And can you just imagine the look of happiness and pride on your parents’ face when they see A+ on your marks sheet? And what about your own sense of achievement? Missing your favourite cartoon was worth it after all, isn’t it?

Here is the story of a determined child who set a goal for himself, and went all out to achieve it.

Once upon a time there lived a king called Uttanapada. He had two wives called Suruchi and Suneethi. Both the queens had a son each. Uttama was the elder son and Dhruva, the younger one. Like all little kids, they were often competing with each other in everyday activities. If Uttama won a few races, Dhruva was better in some. But in a race to sit on the lap of their father, King Uttanapada, it was always Uttama who won. This deeply affected Dhruva, and it set him thinking.

" If I cannot find a place on my father’s lap, I will find some other place to sit. Such a place that is totally, completely mine, and nobody else can occupy!" he told himself.

With this goal in mind, he left the palace and started meditating on Lord Vishnu. He forgot sleep, food, water, play, parents and comforts. He Prayed God to give him a permanent place where nobody disturbed him. Finally, Lord Vishnu, impressed and pleased with the determination of the young boy, appeared before him and granted him his wish. The Lord gave Dhruva a permanent place in the universe by making him a star, a star which was fixed and did not move!

To date, the Pole Star or DHRUVA NAKSHATRA can always be seen in the north on a clear night, steady and bright in a sky full of moving, twinkling stars. It is there to remind us that with single mindedness, concentration and determination, there is nothing that cannot be achieved. So fix your goals, set out to achieve it, and you shall succeed.

You too can shine bright like Dhruva, and carve a place for yourself in this highly competitive world.