Shloka 7
ययातिरुवाच ऊर्ध्व॑ देहात् कर्मणा जृम्भमाणाद् व्यक्त पृथिव्यामनुसंचरन्ति । इमं भौम॑ नरकं ते पतन्ति नावेक्षन्ते वर्षपूगाननेकान्,ययाति बोले--कर्मसे उत्पन्न होने और बढ़नेवाले शरीरको पाकर गर्भसे निकलनेके पश्चात् जीव सबके समक्ष इस पृथ्वीपर (विषयोंमें) विचरते हैं। उनका यह विचरण ही भौम नरक कहा गया है। इसीमें वे पड़ते हैं। इसमें पड़नेपर वे व्यर्थ बीतनेवाले अनेक वर्षसमूहोंकी ओर दृष्टिपात नहीं करते
yayātir uvāca ūrdhvaṃ dehāt karmaṇā jṛmbhamāṇād vyaktaḥ pṛthivyām anusañcaranti | imaṃ bhaumaṃ narakaṃ te patanti nāvekṣante varṣapūgān anekān ||
Yayāti said: “Having obtained a manifest body that arises and grows through one’s own actions, beings, once they emerge from the womb, wander openly upon this earth among sense-objects. This very roaming is called the ‘earthly hell’ (bhauma-naraka). Into it they fall, and once fallen there, they do not look upon—nor take heed of—the many heaps of years that pass away in vain.”
अष्टक उवाच
Educational Q&A
Worldly life driven by karma and sense-attachment can itself become a ‘hell’—a condition where one wastes years without awareness. The verse urges vigilance: recognize how time is consumed by wandering among objects and turn toward purposeful, dharmic living.
In this passage Yayāti speaks reflectively about embodied existence: after birth, beings move about on earth pursuing experiences. He characterizes this unreflective wandering as ‘bhauma-naraka’ (earthly hell), because it traps them in heedlessness and makes long stretches of life pass without true insight.