Shloka 38
आदि पर्व — अध्याय ८३: ययाति-इन्द्र-संवादः तथा अष्टक-प्रश्नः
Yayāti–Indra Dialogue and Aṣṭaka’s Inquiry
ययातिरुवाच अतृप्तो यौवनस्याहं देवयान्यां भृगूद्वह । प्रसाद कुरु मे ब्रह्म॒ज्जरेयं न विशेच्च माम्,ययाति बोले--भृगुश्रेष्ठ! मैं देवयानीके साथ युवावस्थामें रहकर तृप्त नहीं हो सका हूँ; अतः ब्रह्मन! मुझपर ऐसी कृपा कीजिये, जिससे यह बुकढ़ापा मेरे शरीरमें प्रवेश न करे
yāyātir uvāca | atṛpto yauvanasyāhaṃ devayānyāṃ bhṛgūdvaha | prasāda kuru me brahman jareyaṃ na viśec ca mām ||
Yayāti said: “O foremost of the Bhṛgus, though I have enjoyed youth with Devayānī, I am still unsated. Therefore, O brāhmaṇa, show me your favor—let this old age not enter into me.” The verse highlights the moral tension between unchecked desire and the natural law of aging, foreshadowing the ethical consequences of craving that refuses rightful limits.
वैशम्पायन उवाच