Atithi-prāpti and the Brāhmaṇa’s Deliberation on Triadic Dharma (अतिथिप्राप्तिः धर्मत्रयविचारश्च)
स्मृत्वा कालपरीमाण् प्रवृत्ति ये समास्थिता: । दोष: कालपरीमाणे महानेष क्रियावताम्
Janamejaya uvāca: smṛtvā kālaparimāṇaṁ pravṛtti ye samāsthitāḥ | doṣaḥ kālaparimāṇe mahān eṣa kriyāvatām ||
Janamejaya berkata: Mereka yang, dengan mengingati ukuran masa yang tetap, berdiri pada jalan tindakan lahiriah (pravṛtti)—menyasar hasil yang terikat waktu seperti syurga—menanggung suatu kecacatan besar: bagi insan yang berorientasikan perbuatan, buah amalnya terkurung dalam batas waktu, maka ia terbatas dan boleh habis.
जनमेजय उवाच
Actions pursued for time-limited rewards (like heaven) yield results that are themselves limited by time; this finitude is presented as a major flaw for those devoted to result-oriented activity.
Janamejaya raises a reflective point about the limitation inherent in the pravṛtti-oriented pursuit of ritual and worldly merit: its fruits are enjoyed only within temporal bounds and therefore do not constitute an ultimate good.