Rishi Narad, the divine traveller sage, who always recites the name of Bhagwan Vishnu, once got a doubt on what actually was the power of chanting the name of the Almighty. He rushed to Shri Krishna who was the incarnation of Bhagwan Vishnu and residing in Dwaraka to ask him to clarify him his doubt.
Shri Krishna received the divine sage with warm hospitality and asked him the reason for his sudden arrival. With great respect for his swami, Rishi Narad asks him to let him know the benefit of chanting the Almighty’s name. Shri Krishna smiles and shows Rishi Narad a small insect on the ground. He asks Rishi Narad to recite the chant of Om Namo Narayan in the insect’s ear. Rishi Narad does the same, but to his surprise the insect’s immediately dies hearing the chant. Rishi Narad does not understand the reason behind this.
But Shri Krishna is calm and asks him to recite the same chant in the ears of a butterfly in the garden. When Rishi Narad does it, the butterfly too dies. Then Shri Krishna asks Rishi Narad to do the same in the ears of a deer. Rishi Narad does it hesitantly and the deer dies too. Rishi Narad gets worried about this chain of events and goes back to Shri Krishna dejected.
But Shri Krishna does not say a word and asks Rishi Narad to recite the name in the ears of a just born calf. Rishi Narad is worried at Shri Krishna’s behaviour that he was not affected by the deaths of these innocent lives. But Shri Krishna insists on it and Rishi Narad repeats the same. The calf too in the same way dies as soon as it hears the name of Bhagwan Vishnu.
Rishi Narad becomes very furious at Shri Krishna and asks him that what the reason for his strange behaviour was. Shri Krishna says nothing but asks Rishi Narad to visit the King of Kasi as he was just blessed with a son and recite the name in the ears of the new born child. Rishi Narad is shocked, but as he cannot disobey the order of Shri Krishna, Rishi Narad leaves for Kashi.
In Kashi, Rishi Narad is received with great regard and the King shows him his newly born son and asks Rishi Narad to bless him. Rishi Narad recites the name of Bhagwan Vishnu in the ears of the child and fears the worst. But to his great surprise, the child gets up and starts talking. The child says to Rishi Narad that it was because of listening to the name chant of Bhagwan Vishnu that all his sins were washed away and he took immediate births and finally was born as a human starting his journey as an insect. Rishi Narad realises that the child was the same one who was an insect and in whose ears Rishi Narad had recited the name of Bhagwan Vishnu first.
The child mentions to Rishi Narad that the power of listening to the Almighty’s name was the reason behind it. Rishi Narad realises the power of Bhagwan Vishnu’s name which gave the insect the privilege to be born as a human. He goes back to Shri Krishna who smilingly asks him whether his doubt was cleared or not. Humbly Rishi Narad falls at his feet and chants the name of Bhagwan Vishnu with immense bliss and happiness realising its power.