Yayati's Dialogues with Ashtaka and Pratardana

Yayati was falling. He had exhausted the merits of his good deeds, and the celestial world could no longer hold him. Cast out from the sky, he was descending toward bhouma — the earthly hell. The only grace in his fall was a boon from Shakra (Indra): he would land among righteous men, in an assembly of those with all good qualities. His descent was interrupted by King Ashtaka, who saw a radiant, garlanded, handsome figure descending from the heavens and asked the obvious questions: Who are you? Where are you going? Yayati told him plainly: "Since I have lost my merits, I am falling. I have been cast out from the sky and am entering the earth. The Brahmanas and the rulers of the worlds are asking me to hasten." Ashtaka, recognizing a being of wisdom, first asked him about dharma. "Who among two exerting men," he asked, "first attains union with the gods?" Yayati’s answer was not about effort alone. "He who has no home despite being a householder and has controlled his desires, and the mendicant who lives in the village but has no home, will reach first." He spoke of performing dharma without thought of gain, and of how cruelty finds no truth. Satisfied, Ashtaka turned to the immediate problem. "Do not keep falling," he said. "I ask you if there is any world for me here, in the sky or in heaven." Yayati assured him: "O lion among kings! There are many worlds for you to enjoy in heaven, as many as the cattle and horses on earth and animals in the forests and in the mountains." Then Ashtaka made his offer. "O lord of kings! I give you all the worlds that are mine in heaven, be they in the sky or in heaven. Take them and go there quickly. Do not keep falling." It was a staggering gift — a portion of eternity, offered to stop a friend's fall. Yayati refused. "O chief among kings! The likes of me, who are not Brahmanas or those who know the brahman, do not accept gifts. O lord of men! Earlier, I have always given to Brahmanas myself, as one must." He laid out the principle: a non-Brahmana should not earn a living through begging, nor should the wife of a valorous husband. To accept such a gift would be to act in a way he never had before. "If I act the way I have never done before, what righteousness will come of that?" Ashtaka’s offer was not the last. Another king, Pratardana, now spoke. He asked the same question — were there worlds for him in heaven? Yayati described them: worlds dripping with nectar mixed with ghee, full of bliss, so numerous that even living in each for seven days would last an eternity. Pratardana made the same offer. "I give them all to you. Do not keep falling. Whatever worlds are for me, in the sky or in heaven, take them quickly and go there." Yayati refused again, this time on the grounds of a king's specific dharma. "O king! No king who is equal in energy will crave for and accept the possessions obtained by another king through yoga (spiritual practice). Even if affected with the adversity of destiny, no wise king should act in a cruel way. An intelligent king will tread the path of dharma and fame and bear dharma in mind." To accept another king's hard-earned heavenly merit would be a mean act, beneath a learned king who knew dharma. "If I do what others refuse to accept, how can that bring my welfare?" Having spoken these words to both kings, Yayati continued his fall. Vasumana, another king present, prepared to speak.