Shloka 20
अध्र॒वा सर्वमत्येंषु श्रीरुपालक्ष्यते भृशम् भवतो व्यसन दृष्टवा शक्रविस्पर्थधिनो भूशम्
adhruvā sarvamartyeṣu śrīr upalakṣyate bhṛśam | bhavato vyasanaṃ dṛṣṭvā śakra-vispartha-dhīno bhūśam ||
सञ्जय उवाच— अध्रुवा हि मनुष्येषु श्रीरुपलक्ष्यते भृशम्। भवतो व्यसनं दृष्ट्वा—यस्य राज्यश्रियैव शक्रसदृशता बभूव—निश्चितं मे जातं यत् न कस्यचित् मनुष्यस्य धनं नित्यं स्थिरं मन्येत॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Worldly prosperity (śrī) is inherently impermanent; even those who seem Indra-like in power can fall into calamity, so one should not treat wealth and status as permanently secure.
Sañjaya addresses a king (the ‘lord of the earth’), pointing out that the king—once comparable to Indra due to his imperial fortune—has now met adversity, proving that human wealth does not remain stable.