Shloka 17
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 90 — Pūror Vaṃśa, Kuru-Pravara, and the Janamejaya Line
Genealogical Recitation
ततो दिव्यमजंर प्राप्प लोक॑ प्रजापतेलॉकपतेर्दुरापम् । तत्रावसं वर्षसहसमात्रं ततो लोकं परमस्म्यभ्युपेत:,तदनन्तर लोकपालोंके लिये भी दुर्लभ प्रजापतिके उस दिव्य लोकमें जा पहुँचा, जहाँ जरावस्थाका प्रवेश नहीं है। वहाँ एक हजार वर्षतक रहा, फिर उससे भी उत्तम लोकमें चला गया
tato divyam ajaraṁ prāpya lokaṁ prajāpateḥ lokapater durāpam | tatrāvasaṁ varṣasahasramātraṁ tato lokaṁ param asmīty abhyupetaḥ ||
Then I reached the divine, ageless world of Prajāpati—the Lord of worlds—so difficult to attain. There I dwelt for only a thousand years; thereafter I went on to an even higher realm.
अष्टक उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the most exalted heavenly attainments are finite in duration; true spiritual fulfillment points beyond temporary celestial reward toward a higher, ‘supreme’ state, expressed here as an inner certainty—‘I am (of) that.’
Aṣṭaka recounts his posthumous journey: he attains the difficult-to-reach, ageless realm of Prajāpati, resides there for a thousand years, and then proceeds onward to an even superior realm.