Messenger of the gods

As Durvasa finishes blessing Mudgala, a messenger of the gods descends in a celestial chariot and tells him to ascend — he has earned heaven. But Mudgala does not climb aboard. Instead, he asks the messenger to describe heaven's qualities and its shortcomings before he decides, invoking the principle that seven steps together constitutes friendship with the righteous.

Having heard the messenger describe heaven's taints — the inevitable fall, the regret, the fading garlands — Moudgalya makes a decision that shocks the gods. He sends the messenger back alone. He wants nothing to do with a happiness that ends.

A messenger of the gods arrives to escort the sage Moudgalya to heaven. But before leaving, Moudgalya asks him a question: what is heaven really like? The messenger answers — first with the splendors, then with the truth that no one who goes there wants to hear.