Shloka 48
श्रेयो-धर्मकर्मविचारः
Inquiry into Śreyas, Dharma, and Karma
सप्तोत्तरं तत्र वसत्यनीश: संहारविक्षेपशतं सशेषम् | तस्मादुपावृत्य मनुष्यलोके ततो महान् मानुषतामुपैति,“किंतु जो भलीभाँति योगसाधनमें असमर्थ है, वह योगगश्रष्ट पुरुष सौ कल्पोंतक ऊपरके सात लोकोंमें निवास करता है। फिर बचे हुए कर्मसंस्कारोंके सहित वहाँसे लौटकर मनुष्यलोकमें पहलेसे बढ़कर महत्त्व-सम्पन्न हो मनुष्यशरीरको पाता है
saptottaraṃ tatra vasaty anīśaḥ saṃhāra-vikṣepa-śataṃ saśeṣam | tasmād upāvṛtya manuṣya-loke tato mahān mānuṣatām upaiti ||
Bhishma said: One who is not fully masterful in yoga-practice dwells there—above, in the higher worlds—for a period extending to a hundred cycles of dissolution and re-manifestation, with residual karmic traces still remaining. From there, returning again to the human realm, he attains a human birth of greater stature and capability than before, carrying those remaining impressions forward toward completion of the yogic path.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even if a practitioner fails to complete yoga, the effort is not wasted: he enjoys an elevated post-mortem state for a long duration, then returns to human life with enhanced capacity and status, carrying residual karmic impressions that support renewed spiritual progress.
In Bhishma’s instruction (Shanti Parva), he explains the post-death trajectory of a yoga-practitioner who is unable to finish the discipline: residence in higher worlds for an extended cosmic measure, followed by return to the human world in a more eminent birth, still bearing remaining karmic traces.