Shloka 23
Dvārakā’s Distress and the Saubha Engagement (द्वारकाव्यग्रता तथा सौभयुद्धम्)
तस्य रूपं॑ प्रपतत: पितुर्मम नराधिप । ययाते: क्षीणपुण्यस्य स्वर्गादिव महीतलम्,नरेश्वरर! उस विमानसे गिरते हुए मेरे पिताका स्वरूप ऐसा जान पड़ता था, मानो पुण्यक्षय होनेपर स्वर्गसे पृथ्वीतलपर गिरनेवाले राजा ययातिका शरीर हो
tasya rūpaṃ prapatataḥ pitur mama narādhipa | yayāteḥ kṣīṇa-puṇyasya svargād iva mahītalam ||
Vāyu said: “O king of men, as my father was falling, his appearance seemed like that of King Yayāti—whose merit had been exhausted—falling from heaven down to the earth. The scene underscores that even celestial attainments are impermanent when sustained only by finite merit.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Heavenly enjoyment gained by accumulated merit (puṇya) is not permanent; when that merit is exhausted (kṣīṇa-puṇya), one must fall back into mortal conditions. The verse highlights the ethical principle that outcomes follow karma and that lasting welfare requires deeper spiritual grounding than finite merit alone.
Vāyu describes to the king how his father, falling from a higher realm, looked like King Yayāti falling from heaven after his merit was spent. The comparison evokes a well-known exemplar (Yayāti) to convey the gravity and inevitability of the fall.