Shloka 3
ययाति–अष्टक–प्रतर्दन संवादः | Yayāti’s Dialogue with Aṣṭaka and Pratardana on Merit, Gifts, and Ethical Restraint
स गत: स्वर्निवासं तं॑ निवसन् मुदितः सुखी । कालेन चातिमहता पुन: शक्रेण पातितः,स्वर्गलोकमें जाकर वे बड़ी प्रसन्नताके साथ सुखपूर्वक रहने लगे और बहुत कालके बाद इन्द्रद्वारा वे पुनः स्वर्गसे नीचे गिरा दिये गये। स्वर्गसे भ्रष्ट हो पृथ्वीपर गिरते समय वे भूतलतक नहीं पहुँचे, आकाशमें ही स्थिर हो गये, ऐसा मैंने सुना है
sa gataḥ svar-nivāsaṁ taṁ nivasan muditaḥ sukhī | kālena cātimahatā punaḥ śakreṇa pātitaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Having gone to that heavenly abode, he lived there joyfully and in comfort. But after a very long time he was again cast down by Śakra (Indra). Thus, even the pleasures of heaven are not permanent: when the merit that sustains them is exhausted, one falls from that state.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Heavenly enjoyment is conditional and temporary; when the accumulated merit that supports it is exhausted, one must fall from Svarga. The verse underscores the ethical logic of karma and the impermanence of reward-based states.
A previously mentioned figure reaches Svarga and lives there happily for a long time, but later Indra causes him to fall again—signaling the end of his heaven-sustaining merit and a return toward lower realms.