Shloka 16
Adhyāya 270 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s inquiry on saṃnyāsa; Bhīṣma on calculable time, tamas, and karma
Vṛtra–Uśanā exemplum begins
तत्र देवा: प्रयच्छन्ति राज्यानि च धनानि च । शुभे: कर्मभिरारब्धा: प्रच्छिन्दन्त्यशुभेषु च
tatra devāḥ prayacchanti rājyāni ca dhanāni ca | śubhaiḥ karmabhir ārabdhāḥ pracchindanty aśubheṣu ca ||
毗湿摩说道：“在那里，天神以求告者的善业为报，赐予王国、财富等种种；然而当不善业的果报来临，他们便割断——连先前所赐的王国与财物也一并夺去。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Prosperity and power are portrayed as karmically conditioned: merit can bring divine support in the form of kingdom and wealth, but the ripening of demerit can revoke even earlier gains. The verse emphasizes moral causality and the instability of worldly success when opposed by aśubha-karma.
Bhīṣma explains a principle observed in that setting: the gods appear to reward supplicants according to their past good deeds by granting rulership and riches, yet when adverse karma matures, those same boons are withdrawn—kingdoms and wealth are taken away.