Shloka 41
ययाति–अष्टक संवादः
Yayāti–Aṣṭaka Dialogue on Seniority, Merit, and Fate
शुक्राचार्यने कहा--नहुषनन्दन! तुम भक्तिभावसे मेरा चिन्तन करके अपनी वृद्धावस्थाका इच्छानुसार दूसरेके शरीरमें संचार कर सकोगे। उस दशामें तुम्हें पाप भी नहीं लगेगा। जो पुत्र तुम्हें (प्रसन्नतापूर्वक) अपनी युवावस्था देगा, वही राजा होगा, साथ ही दीर्घायु, यशस्वी तथा अनेक संतानोंसे युक्त होगा
śukra uvāca—nahuṣa-nandana! tvaṁ bhakti-bhāvena māṁ cintayitvā yathā-kāmaṁ sva-vṛddhāvasthāṁ anyasya śarīre saṅkrāmayituṁ śakṣyasi. tasmin daśāyāṁ te pāpaṁ na bhaviṣyati. yaḥ putras tvāṁ prasannatayā sva-yauvanaṁ dāsyati sa eva rājā bhaviṣyati, sa ca dīrghāyuḥ yaśasvī bahu-putra-yuktaś ca bhaviṣyati.
Śukra said: “O descendant of Nahuṣa! If you contemplate me with devotion, you will be able, as you wish, to transfer your own old age into another’s body. In that condition no sin will attach to you. The son who gladly gives you his youth will become king; he will also be long-lived, renowned, and blessed with many children.”
शुक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
Devotional remembrance is presented as a means to obtain extraordinary power, but the ethical frame is maintained: the exchange of youth must be voluntary, and the willing son is rewarded with legitimate kingship, longevity, fame, and progeny—linking consent, dharma, and royal succession.
Śukra grants a boon to the descendant of Nahuṣa (Yayāti): through devotion he can shift his old age into another body and take youth in return without incurring sin; whichever son willingly offers his youth will be made king and will prosper.