Dhruva Maharaja, a five-year-old boy, went to the forest for penance and austerity, and the King could not at all believe that a small boy of such a tender age could live in the forest. He was certain that Dhruva was dead. He therefore could not fix his faith in the message that Dhruva Maharaja was coming back home again. For him this message said that a dead man was coming back home, and so he could not believe it. After Dhruva Maharajas departure from home, King Uttanapada thought that he was the cause of Dhruvas leaving, and thus he considered himself the most wretched. Therefore, even though it was possible that his lost son was coming back from the kingdom of death, he thought that since he was most sinful it was not possible for him to be so fortunate as to get back his lost son.