Enumeration of the Elements of Material Creation

Verse 1 (bhagavata.11.22.1)

श्रीउद्धव उवाच कति तत्त्वानि विश्वेश सङ्ख्यातान्यृषिभिः प्रभो । नवैकादश पञ्च त्रीण्यात्थ त्वमिह शुश्रुम ॥ 22.1 ॥

śrī-uddhava uvāca kati tattvāni viśveśa saṅkhyātāny ṛṣibhiḥ prabho navaikādaśa pañca trīṇy āttha tvam iha śuśruma

Shri Uddhava said: O lord of the universe, how many elements have the sages counted? Here I have heard you yourself speak of nine, eleven, five and three.

Verse 2 (bhagavata.11.22.2)

केचित् षड्विंशतिं प्राहुरपरे पञ्चविंशतिम् । सप्तैके नव षट् केचिच्चत्वार्येकादशापरे । केचित् सप्तदश प्राहुः षोडशैके त्रयोदश ॥ 22.2 ॥

kecit ṣaḍ-viṁśatiṁ prāhur apare pañca-viṁśatiṁ saptaike nava ṣaṭ kecic catvāry ekādaśāpare kecit saptadaśa prāhuḥ ṣoḍaśaike trayodaśa

Some say twenty-six, others twenty-five; some seven, some nine, some six, some four, some eleven; some say seventeen, others sixteen, others thirteen.

Verse 3 (bhagavata.11.22.3)

एतावत्त्वं हि सङ्ख्यानामृषयो यद्विवक्षया । गायन्ति पृथगायुष्मन्निदं नो वक्तुमर्हसि ॥ 22.3 ॥

etāvattvaṁ hi saṅkhyānām ṛṣayo yad-vivakṣayā gāyanti pṛthag āyuṣmann idaṁ no vaktum arhasi

O long-lived one, please tell me with what particular intention the sages each proclaim these numbers so differently.

Verse 4 (bhagavata.11.22.4)

श्रीभगवानुवाच युक्तं च सन्ति सर्वत्र भाषन्ते ब्राह्मणा यथा । मायां मदीयामुद्गृह्य वदतां किं नु दुर्घटम् ॥ 22.4 ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca yuktaṁ ca santi sarvatra bhāṣante brāhmaṇā yathā māyāṁ madīyām udgṛhya vadatāṁ kiṁ nu durghaṭam

Shri Bhagavan said: This is indeed reasonable, for all these elements are present everywhere, and so the learned speak of them in different ways; for those who speak taking shelter of my own maya, what indeed is impossible?

Verse 5 (bhagavata.11.22.5)

नैतदेवं यथात्थ त्वं यदहं वच्मि तत्तथा । एवं विवदतां हेतुं शक्तयो मे दुरत्ययाः ॥ 22.5 ॥

naitad evaṁ yathāttha tvaṁ yad ahaṁ vacmi tat tathā evaṁ vivadatāṁ hetuṁ śaktayo me duratyayāḥ

'It is not as you say, it is as I say' — the very cause of those who argue in this way is my own energies, which are impossible to overcome.

Verse 6 (bhagavata.11.22.6)

यासां व्यतिकरादासीद् विकल्पो वदतां पदम् । प्राप्ते शमदमेऽप्येति वादस्तमनुशाम्यति ॥ 22.6 ॥

yāsāṁ vyatikarād āsīd vikalpo vadatāṁ padam prāpte śama-dame ’pyeti vādas tam anu śāmyati

That from whose mutual interplay differing opinions arise among disputants, that very thing subsides once equanimity and self-control are attained, and with it the dispute itself is stilled.

Verse 7 (bhagavata.11.22.7)

परस्परानुप्रवेशात् तत्त्वानां पुरुषर्षभ । पौर्वापर्यप्रसङ्ख्यानं यथा वक्तुर्विवक्षितम् ॥ 22.7 ॥

parasparānupraveśāt tattvānāṁ puruṣarṣabha paurvāparya-prasaṅkhyānaṁ yathā vaktur vivakṣitam

O best of men, because the elements enter into one another, their enumeration in this or that order follows only the speaker's own intention.

Verse 8 (bhagavata.11.22.8)

एकस्मिन्नपि दृश्यन्ते प्रविष्टानीतराणि च । पूर्वस्मिन् वा परस्मिन् वा तत्त्वे तत्त्वानि सर्वशः ॥ 22.8 ॥

ekasminn api dṛśyante praviṣṭānītarāṇi ca pūrvasmin vā parasmin vā tattve tattvāni sarvaśaḥ

Within even a single element all the other elements are seen to have entered, whether it be prior cause or later effect — the elements are, in every way, embedded within one another.

Verse 9 (bhagavata.11.22.9)

पौर्वापर्यमतोऽमीषां प्रसङ्ख्यानमभीप्सताम् । यथा विविक्तं यद्वक्त्रं गृह्णीमो युक्तिसम्भवात् ॥ 22.9 ॥

paurvāparyam ato ’mīṣāṁ prasaṅkhyānam abhīpsatām yathā viviktaṁ yad-vaktraṁ gṛhṇīmo yukti-sambhavāt

Therefore, whatever order those wishing to enumerate these elements arrive at, we accept it as valid on the basis of whatever reasoning makes it distinct and coherent.

Verse 10 (bhagavata.11.22.10)

अनाद्यविद्यायुक्तस्य पुरुषस्यात्मवेदनम् । स्वतो न सम्भवादन्यस्तत्त्वज्ञो ज्ञानदो भवेत् ॥ 22.10 ॥

anādy-avidyā-yuktasya puruṣasyātma-vedanam svato na sambhavād anyas tattva-jño jñāna-do bhavet

Self-knowledge cannot arise on its own for a person bound by beginningless ignorance, since it cannot come about spontaneously; therefore someone else, a knower of truth, must be the one who imparts that knowledge.

Verse 11 (bhagavata.11.22.11)

पुरुषेश्वरयोरत्र न वैलक्षण्यमण्वपि । तदन्यकल्पनापार्था ज्ञानं च प्रकृतेर्गुणः ॥ 22.11 ॥

puruṣeśvarayor atra na vailakṣaṇyam aṇv api tad-anya-kalpanāpārthā jñānaṁ ca prakṛter guṇaḥ

Here there is not the slightest real distinction between the individual soul and the Lord; imagining a difference between them is pointless — indeed such 'knowledge' itself remains merely a quality of nature so long as this distinction persists.

Verse 12 (bhagavata.11.22.12)

प्रकृतिर्गुणसाम्यं वै प्रकृतेर्नात्मनो गुणाः । सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति स्थित्युत्पत्त्यन्तहेतवः ॥ 22.12 ॥

prakṛtir guṇa-sāmyaṁ vai prakṛter nātmano guṇāḥ sattvaṁ rajas tama iti sthity-utpatty-anta-hetavaḥ

Nature is, in truth, the state of equilibrium of the modes; the modes belong to nature, not to the self; goodness, passion and darkness are the causes of the maintenance, origin and end of creation.

Verse 13 (bhagavata.11.22.13)

सत्त्वं ज्ञानं रजः कर्म तमोऽज्ञानमिहोच्यते । गुणव्यतिकरः कालः स्वभावः सूत्रमेव च ॥ 22.13 ॥

sattvaṁ jñānaṁ rajaḥ karma tamo ’jñānam ihocyate guṇa-vyatikaraḥ kālaḥ svabhāvaḥ sūtram eva ca

Here goodness is spoken of as knowledge, passion as action, and darkness as ignorance; the mutual clash of the modes is time itself, and inherent nature and the primal principle [mahat] are likewise bound up with it.

Verse 14 (bhagavata.11.22.14)

पुरुषः प्रकृतिर्व्यक्तमहङ्कारो नभोऽनिलः । ज्योतिरापः क्षितिरिति तत्त्वान्युक्तानि मे नव ॥ 22.14 ॥

puruṣaḥ prakṛtir vyaktam ahaṅkāro nabho ’nilaḥ jyotir āpaḥ kṣitir iti tattvāny uktāni me nava

The enjoying self, nature, the manifest mahat-tattva, false ego, ether, air, fire, water and earth — I have spoken of these as the nine elements.

Verse 15 (bhagavata.11.22.15)

श्रोत्रं त्वग्दर्शनं घ्राणो जिह्वेति ज्ञानशक्तयः । वाक्पाण्युपस्थपाय्वङ्घ्रिः कर्माण्यङ्गोभयं मनः ॥ 22.15 ॥

śrotraṁ tvag darśanaṁ ghrāṇo jihveti jñāna-śaktayaḥ vāk-pāṇy-upastha-pāyv-aṅghriḥ karmāṇy aṅgobhayaṁ manaḥ

Ear, skin, eye, nose and tongue are the knowledge-gathering senses; speech, hands, genitals, anus and feet are the working senses; and the mind belongs to both categories.

Verse 16 (bhagavata.11.22.16)

शब्दः स्पर्शो रसो गन्धो रूपं चेत्यर्थजातयः । गत्युक्त्युत्सर्गशिल्पानि कर्मायतनसिद्धयः ॥ 22.16 ॥

śabdaḥ sparśo raso gandho rūpaṁ cety artha-jātayaḥ gaty-ukty-utsarga-śilpāni karmāyatana-siddhayaḥ

Sound, touch, taste, smell and form are the objects of the senses; and movement, speech, excretion and craftsmanship are the accomplishments belonging to the working senses.

Verse 17 (bhagavata.11.22.17)

सर्गादौ प्रकृतिर्ह्यस्य कार्यकारणरूपिणी । सत्त्वादिभिर्गुणैर्धत्ते पुरुषोऽव्यक्त ईक्षते ॥ 22.17 ॥

sargādau prakṛtir hy asya kārya-kāraṇa-rūpiṇī sattvādibhir guṇair dhatte puruṣo ’vyakta īkṣate

At the beginning of creation, nature herself, in the form of cause and effect, takes on the modes beginning with goodness, while the unmanifest Purusha merely looks on as witness.

Verse 18 (bhagavata.11.22.18)

व्यक्तादयो विकुर्वाणा धातवः पुरुषेक्षया । लब्धवीर्याः सृजन्त्यण्डं संहताः प्रकृतेर्बलात् ॥ 22.18 ॥

vyaktādayo vikurvāṇā dhātavaḥ puruṣekṣayā labdha-vīryāḥ sṛjanty aṇḍaṁ saṁhatāḥ prakṛter balāt

Under the glance of the Purusha, the elements beginning with mahat, undergoing transformation, gain their potency, and, gathered together by the power of nature, they create the cosmic egg.

Verse 19 (bhagavata.11.22.19)

सप्तैव धातव इति तत्रार्थाः पञ्चखादयः । ज्ञानमात्मोभयाधारस्ततो देहेन्द्रियासवः ॥ 22.19 ॥

saptaiva dhātava iti tatrārthāḥ pañca khādayaḥ jñānam ātmobhayādhāras tato dehendriyāsavaḥ

Some hold there are only seven elements — the five gross elements, the knowing self, and the one who is the ground of both; from these arise the body, senses and vital breath.

Verse 20 (bhagavata.11.22.20)

षडित्यत्रापि भूतानि पञ्चषष्ठः परः पुमान् । तैर्युक्त आत्मसम्भूतैः सृष्ट्वेदं समपाविशत् ॥ 22.20 ॥

ṣaḍ ity atrāpi bhūtāni pañca ṣaṣṭhaḥ paraḥ pumān tair yukta ātma-sambhūtaiḥ sṛṣṭvedaṁ samapāviśat

Here too some count six — the five elements and the sixth, the Supreme Person; joined with those elements which he has himself brought forth, he creates this world and enters into it.

Verse 21 (bhagavata.11.22.21)

चत्वार्येवेति तत्रापि तेज आपोऽन्नमात्मनः । जातानि तैरिदं जातं जन्मावयविनः खलु ॥ 22.21 ॥

catvāry eveti tatrāpi teja āpo ’nnam ātmanaḥ jātāni tair idaṁ jātaṁ janmāvayavinaḥ khalu

Some accept only four elements — fire, water and food [earth], which arise from the Self; from these this world, whose parts undergo birth, has come into being.

Verse 22 (bhagavata.11.22.22)

सङ्ख्याने सप्तदशके भूतमात्रेन्द्रियाणि च । पञ्च पञ्चैकमनसा आत्मा सप्तदशः स्मृतः ॥ 22.22 ॥

saṅkhyāne saptadaśake bhūta-mātrendriyāṇi ca pañca pañcaika-manasā ātmā saptadaśaḥ smṛtaḥ

In the reckoning of seventeen, the five elements, the five subtle essences, the five senses, the mind, and the self as the seventeenth are counted.

Verse 23 (bhagavata.11.22.23)

तद्वत् षोडशसङ्ख्याने आत्मैव मन उच्यते । भूतेन्द्रियाणि पञ्चैव मन आत्मा त्रयोदश ॥ 22.23 ॥

tadvat ṣoḍaśa-saṅkhyāne ātmaiva mana ucyate bhūtendriyāṇi pañcaiva mana ātmā trayodaśa

Likewise, in the reckoning of sixteen, the self itself is called the mind; and counting the five elements, five senses, mind and self, thirteen are also reckoned.

Verse 24 (bhagavata.11.22.24)

एकादशत्व आत्मासौ महाभूतेन्द्रियाणि च । अष्टौ प्रकृतयश्चैव पुरुषश्च नवेत्यथ ॥ 22.24 ॥

ekādaśatva ātmāsau mahā-bhūtendriyāṇi ca aṣṭau prakṛtayaś caiva puruṣaś ca navety atha

In the count of eleven there are the self, the gross elements and the senses; and counting the eight natures together with the Purusha, nine are reckoned as well.

Verse 25 (bhagavata.11.22.25)

इति नानाप्रसङ्ख्यानं तत्त्वानामृषिभिः कृतम् । सर्वं न्याय्यं युक्तिमत्त्वाद् विदुषां किमशोभनम् ॥ 22.25 ॥

iti nānā-prasaṅkhyānaṁ tattvānām ṛṣibhiḥ kṛtam sarvaṁ nyāyyaṁ yuktimattvād viduṣāṁ kim aśobhanam

Thus the sages have made these various enumerations of the elements; being grounded in reasoning, all of them are legitimate — what is there in this unbecoming of the learned?

Verse 26 (bhagavata.11.22.26)

श्रीउद्धव उवाच प्रकृतिः पुरुषश्चोभौ यद्यप्यात्मविलक्षणौ । अन्योन्यापाश्रयात् कृष्ण दृश्यते न भिदा तयोः । प्रकृतौ लक्ष्यते ह्यात्मा प्रकृतिश्च तथात्मनि ॥ 22.26 ॥

śrī-uddhava uvāca prakṛtiḥ puruṣaś cobhau yady apy ātma-vilakṣaṇau anyonyāpāśrayāt kṛṣṇa dṛśyate na bhidā tayoḥ prakṛtau lakṣyate hy ātmā prakṛtiś ca tathātmani

Shri Uddhava said: Though nature and the self are constitutionally distinct, O Krishna, because each seems to rest upon the other, no difference between them is seen — the self appears within nature, and nature likewise within the self.

Verse 27 (bhagavata.11.22.27)

एवं मे पुण्डरीकाक्ष महान्तं संशयं हृदि । छेत्तुमर्हसि सर्वज्ञ वचोभिर्नयनैपुणैः ॥ 22.27 ॥

evaṁ me puṇḍarīkākṣa mahāntaṁ saṁśayaṁ hṛdi chettum arhasi sarva-jña vacobhir naya-naipuṇaiḥ

O lotus-eyed one, O all-knowing Lord, please cut this great doubt from my heart with your words, so skilled in reasoning.

Verse 28 (bhagavata.11.22.28)

त्वत्तो ज्ञानं हि जीवानां प्रमोषस्तेऽत्र शक्तितः । त्वमेव ह्यात्ममायाया गतिं वेत्थ न चापरः ॥ 22.28 ॥

tvatto jñānaṁ hi jīvānāṁ pramoṣas te ’tra śaktitaḥ tvam eva hy ātma-māyāyā gatiṁ vettha na cāparaḥ

From you alone does the knowledge of living beings arise, and by your own power it is stolen away; you alone know the movement of your own maya, no one else.

Verse 29 (bhagavata.11.22.29)

श्रीभगवानुवाच प्रकृतिः पुरुषश्चेति विकल्पः पुरुषर्षभ । एष वैकारिकः सर्गो गुणव्यतिकरात्मकः ॥ 22.29 ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca prakṛtiḥ puruṣaś ceti vikalpaḥ puruṣarṣabha eṣa vaikārikaḥ sargo guṇa-vyatikarātmakaḥ

Shri Bhagavan said: O best of men, this distinction of nature and the self is a conceptual construct; this transforming creation is itself made of the mutual interplay of the modes.

Verse 30 (bhagavata.11.22.30)

ममाङ्ग माया गुणमय्यनेकधा विकल्पबुद्धीश्च गुणैर्विधत्ते । वैकारिकस्त्रिविधोऽध्यात्ममेक- मथाधिदैवमधिभूतमन्यत् ॥ 22.30 ॥

mamāṅga māyā guṇa-mayy anekadhā vikalpa-buddhīś ca guṇair vidhatte vaikārikas tri-vidho ’dhyātmam ekam athādhidaivam adhibhūtam anyat

Dear one, my maya, composed of the modes, fashions through those modes the manifold forms of differentiated intelligence; this transformation is threefold — one aspect adhyatmic, another adhidaivic, and the third adhibhautic.

Verse 31 (bhagavata.11.22.31)

दृग् रूपमार्कं वपुरत्र रन्ध्रे परस्परं सिध्यति यः स्वतः खे । आत्मा यदेषामपरो य आद्यः स्वयानुभूत्याखिलसिद्धसिद्धिः ॥ 22.31 ॥

dṛg rūpam ārkaṁ vapur atra randhre parasparaṁ sidhyati yaḥ svataḥ khe ātmā yad eṣām aparo ya ādyaḥ svayānubhūtyākhila-siddha-siddhiḥ

Just as sight, visible form and the sun's reflection within the eye's pupil establish one another, while the sun itself in the sky is self-established — so the Supreme Self, the original cause of these, remaining apart from them, accomplishes the establishment of all through his own self-luminous experience.

Verse 32 (bhagavata.11.22.32)

एवं त्वगादि श्रवणादि चक्षु- । र्जिह्वादि नासादि च चित्तयुक्तम् ॥ 22.32 ॥

evaṁ tvag-ādi śravaṇādi cakṣur jihvādi nāsādi ca citta-yuktam

In the same way, skin and the rest, hearing and the rest, sight and the rest, taste and the rest, and smell and the rest — all these should be understood as bound up with the mind, intellect and ego.

Verse 33 (bhagavata.11.22.33)

योऽसौ गुणक्षोभकृतो विकारः प्रधानमूलान्महतः प्रसूतः । अहं त्रिवृन्मोहविकल्पहेतु- र्वैकारिकस्तामस ऐन्द्रियश्च ॥ 22.33 ॥

yo ’sau guṇa-kṣobha-kṛto vikāraḥ pradhāna-mūlān mahataḥ prasūtaḥ ahaṁ tri-vṛn moha-vikalpa-hetur vaikārikas tāmasa aindriyaś ca

That transformation which arises from the agitation of the modes, born from the mahat-tattva rooted in pradhana — this is false ego, itself the cause of all illusion and duality, appearing in three forms: sattvic, tamasic, and rajasic-sensory.

Verse 34 (bhagavata.11.22.34)

आत्मा परिज्ञानमयो विवादो ह्यस्तीति नास्तीति भिदार्थनिष्ठः । व्यर्थोऽपि नैवोपरमेत पुंसां मत्तः परावृत्तधियां स्वलोकात् ॥ 22.34 ॥

ātmāparijñāna-mayo vivādo hy astīti nāstīti bhidārtha-niṣṭhaḥ vyartho ’pi naivoparameta puṁsāṁ mattaḥ parāvṛtta-dhiyāṁ sva-lokāt

'This world exists,' 'it does not exist' — this dispute, born of incomplete knowledge of the self and confined to deciding between dualities, though pointless, does not cease for those whose minds have turned away from me, their own true self.

Verse 35 (bhagavata.11.22.35)

श्रीउद्धव उवाच त्वत्तः परावृत्तधियः स्वकृतैः कर्मभिः प्रभो । उच्चावचान् यथा देहान् गृह्णन्ति विसृजन्ति च ॥ 22.35 ॥

śrī-uddhava uvāca tvattaḥ parāvṛtta-dhiyaḥ sva-kṛtaiḥ karmabhiḥ prabho uccāvacān yathā dehān gṛhṇanti visṛjanti ca

Shri Uddhava said: O lord, please explain how those whose intelligence, through their own deeds, has turned away from you take on and cast off bodies both high and low.

Verse 36 (bhagavata.11.22.36)

तन्ममाख्याहि गोविन्द दुर्विभाव्यमनात्मभिः । न ह्येतत् प्रायशो लोके विद्वांसः सन्ति वञ्चिताः ॥ 22.36 ॥

tan mamākhyāhi govinda durvibhāvyam anātmabhiḥ na hy etat prāyaśo loke vidvāṁsaḥ santi vañcitāḥ

O Govinda, this matter is very hard for those without self-knowledge to grasp — please explain it to me; for even the learned, it seems, are generally found deceived on this very point.

Verse 37 (bhagavata.11.22.37)

श्रीभगवानुवाच मनः कर्ममयं नृणामिन्द्रियैः पञ्चभिर्युतम् । लोकाल्लोकं प्रयात्यन्य आत्मा तदनुवर्तते ॥ 22.37 ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca manaḥ karma-mayaṁ nṝṇām indriyaiḥ pañcabhir yutam lokāl lokaṁ prayāty anya ātmā tad anuvartate

Shri Bhagavan said: The mind of men is fashioned out of their deeds, and, joined with the five senses, it passes from one world to another; the self, though different from it, appears to follow along with it.

Verse 38 (bhagavata.11.22.38)

ध्यायन् मनोऽनु विषयान् दृष्टान् वानुश्रुतानथ । उद्यत् सीदत् कर्मतन्त्रं स्मृतिस्तदनु शाम्यति ॥ 22.38 ॥

dhyāyan mano ’nu viṣayān dṛṣṭān vānuśrutān atha udyat sīdat karma-tantraṁ smṛtis tad anu śāmyati

The mind, dwelling on objects seen or heard of, rises and subsides with the web of action, and along with it, memory too fades away.

Verse 39 (bhagavata.11.22.39)

विषयाभिनिवेशेन नात्मानं यत् स्मरेत् पुनः । जन्तोर्वै कस्यचिद्धेतोर्मृत्युरत्यन्तविस्मृतिः ॥ 22.39 ॥

viṣayābhiniveśena nātmānaṁ yat smaret punaḥ jantor vai kasyacid dhetor mṛtyur atyanta-vismṛtiḥ

When, through deep absorption in sense objects, one no longer remembers the self at all, that total forgetting — arising from one cause or another — is what is called death for a living being.

Verse 40 (bhagavata.11.22.40)

जन्म त्वात्मतया पुंसः सर्वभावेन भूरिद । विषयस्वीकृतिं प्राहुर्यथा स्वप्नमनोरथः ॥ 22.40 ॥

janma tv ātmatayā puṁsaḥ sarva-bhāvena bhūri-da viṣaya-svīkṛtiṁ prāhur yathā svapna-manorathaḥ

O most generous one, what is called a man's birth is simply his total identification with some object as if it were the self, exactly as one takes a wish or fancy for reality in a dream.

Verse 41 (bhagavata.11.22.41)

स्वप्नं मनोरथं चेत्थं प्राक्तनं न स्मरत्यसौ । तत्र पूर्वमिवात्मानमपूर्वम् चानुपश्यति ॥ 22.41 ॥

svapnaṁ manorathaṁ cetthaṁ prāktanaṁ na smaraty asau tatra pūrvam ivātmānam apūrvam cānupaśyati

Just as one does not remember an earlier dream or fancy, so this person, though he existed before, sees his prior self as though it never was, and regards himself as newly come into being.

Verse 42 (bhagavata.11.22.42)

इन्द्रियायनसृष्ट्येदं त्रैविध्यं भाति वस्तुनि । बहिरन्तर्भिदाहेतुर्जनोऽसज्जनकृद् यथा ॥ 22.42 ॥

indriyāyana-sṛṣṭyedaṁ trai-vidhyaṁ bhāti vastuni bahir-antar-bhidā-hetur jano ’saj-jana-kṛd yathā

Resting on the creation wrought by the senses, this threefold distinction appears within reality, becoming the cause of division between outer and inner — just as a man, all unaware, might father an unworthy son.

Verse 43 (bhagavata.11.22.43)

नित्यदा ह्यङ्ग भूतानि भवन्ति न भवन्ति च । कालेनालक्ष्यवेगेन सूक्ष्मत्वात्तन्न दृश्यते ॥ 22.43 ॥

nityadā hy aṅga bhūtāni bhavanti na bhavanti ca kālenālakṣya-vegena sūkṣmatvāt tan na dṛśyate

Dear one, all beings are constantly coming into existence and passing away, by the imperceptible motion of time; but because of its subtlety, this is never seen.

Verse 44 (bhagavata.11.22.44)

यथार्चिषां स्रोतसां च फलानां वा वनस्पतेः । तथैव सर्वभूतानां वयोऽवस्थादयः कृताः ॥ 22.44 ॥

yathārciṣāṁ srotasāṁ ca phalānāṁ vā vanaspateḥ tathaiva sarva-bhūtānāṁ vayo-’vasthādayaḥ kṛtāḥ

Just as with the flame of a lamp, the current of a river, or the fruit of a tree, so too the states of all beings — childhood, youth and the rest — are continually being made and remade.

Verse 45 (bhagavata.11.22.45)

सोऽयं दीपोऽर्चिषां यद्वत्स्रोतसां तदिदं जलम् । सोऽयं पुमानिति नृणां मृषा गीर्धीर्मृषायुषाम् ॥ 22.45 ॥

so ’yaṁ dīpo ’rciṣāṁ yadvat srotasāṁ tad idaṁ jalam so ’yaṁ pumān iti nṛṇāṁ mṛṣā gīr dhīr mṛṣāyuṣām

'This is that same lamp, this its same flame' — 'this is that same river, this its same current' — 'this is that same man' — such speech is the false word and false understanding of men whose very lives are being spent in falsehood.

Verse 46 (bhagavata.11.22.46)

मा स्वस्य कर्मबीजेन जायते सोऽप्ययं पुमान् । म्रियते वामरो भ्रान्त्या यथाग्निर्दारुसंयुतः ॥ 22.46 ॥

mā svasya karma-bījena jāyate so ’py ayaṁ pumān mriyate vāmaro bhrāntyā yathāgnir dāru-saṁyutaḥ

This person is neither truly born from the seed of his own deeds, nor, being immortal, does he truly die; only through illusion does he appear to be born and to die, just as fire seems to arise and go out only in connection with firewood.

Verse 47 (bhagavata.11.22.47)

निषेकगर्भजन्मानि बाल्यकौमारयौवनम् । वयोमध्यं जरा मृत्युरित्यवस्थास्तनोर्नव ॥ 22.47 ॥

niṣeka-garbha-janmāni bālya-kaumāra-yauvanam vayo-madhyaṁ jarā mṛtyur ity avasthās tanor nava

Conception, gestation and birth, infancy, boyhood, youth, middle age, old age and death — these are the nine states of the body.

Verse 48 (bhagavata.11.22.48)

एता मनोरथमयीर्हान्यस्योच्चावचास्तनूः । गुणसङ्गादुपादत्ते क्वचित् कश्चिज्जहाति च ॥ 22.48 ॥

etā manoratha-mayīr hānyasyoccāvacās tanūḥ guṇa-saṅgād upādatte kvacit kaścij jahāti ca

These bodily states, high and low, are mere mental constructs, taken up one after another only through association with the modes; and on some occasion a rare soul manages to let them go.

Verse 49 (bhagavata.11.22.49)

आत्मनः पितृपुत्राभ्यामनुमेयौ भवाप्ययौ । न भवाप्ययवस्तूनामभिज्ञो द्वयलक्षणः ॥ 22.49 ॥

ātmanaḥ pitṛ-putrābhyām anumeyau bhavāpyayau na bhavāpyaya-vastūnām abhijño dvaya-lakṣaṇaḥ

By the death of the father and the birth of the son, one infers one's own end and one's own beginning; but the one who has truly understood both these marks — arising and perishing — no longer identifies himself within the birth and death of such things.

Verse 50 (bhagavata.11.22.50)

तरोर्बीजविपाकाभ्यां यो विद्वाञ्जन्मसंयमौ । तरोर्विलक्षणो द्रष्टा एवं द्रष्टा तनोः पृथक् ॥ 22.50 ॥

taror bīja-vipākābhyāṁ yo vidvāñ janma-saṁyamau taror vilakṣaṇo draṣṭā evaṁ draṣṭā tanoḥ pṛthak

One who knows the birth of a tree from its seed and its eventual perishing through ripeness remains, as its knower, distinct and separate from the tree; in just the same way, the witness of the body's birth and death remains separate from the body.

Verse 51 (bhagavata.11.22.51)

प्रकृतेरेवमात्मानमविविच्याबुधः पुमान् । तत्त्वेन स्पर्शसम्मूढः संसारं प्रतिपद्यते ॥ 22.51 ॥

prakṛter evam ātmānam avivicyābudhaḥ pumān tattvena sparśa-sammūḍhaḥ saṁsāraṁ pratipadyate

Thus the unwise person, failing to distinguish his own self from nature, and truly bewildered by that contact, falls into the round of birth and death.

Verse 52 (bhagavata.11.22.52)

सत्त्वसङ्गादृषीन्देवान् रजसासुरमानुषान् । तमसा भूततिर्यक्त्वं भ्रामितो याति कर्मभिः ॥ 22.52 ॥

sattva-saṅgād ṛṣīn devān rajasāsura-mānuṣān tamasā bhūta-tiryaktvaṁ bhrāmito yāti karmabhiḥ

By association with goodness he goes among the sages and gods, by passion among demons and men, and by darkness among ghosts and beasts — thus made to wander by his own deeds.

Verse 53 (bhagavata.11.22.53)

नृत्यतो गायतः पश्यन् यथैवानुकरोति तान् । एवं बुद्धिगुणान् पश्यन्ननीहोऽप्यनुकार्यते ॥ 22.53 ॥

nṛtyato gāyataḥ paśyan yathaivānukaroti tān evaṁ buddhi-guṇān paśyann anīho ’py anukāryate

Just as one watching others dance and sing begins to imitate them, so the self, watching the qualities of the intellect, though itself never truly the doer, appears compelled to imitate them.

Verse 54 (bhagavata.11.22.54)

यथाम्भसा प्रचलता तरवोऽपि चला इव । चक्षुषा भ्राम्यमाणेन दृश्यते भ्रमतीव भूः ॥ 22.54 ॥

yathāmbhasā pracalatā taravo ’pi calā iva cakṣuṣā bhrāmyamāṇena dṛśyate bhramatīva bhūḥ

Just as trees seem to sway when reflected in flowing water, and the earth seems to spin when seen through eyes that are themselves spinning —

Verse 55 (bhagavata.11.22.55)

यथा मनोरथधियो विषयानुभवो मृषा । स्वप्नदृष्टाश्च दाशार्ह तथा संसार आत्मनः ॥ 22.55 ॥

yathā manoratha-dhiyo viṣayānubhavo mṛṣā svapna-dṛṣṭāś ca dāśārha tathā saṁsāra ātmanaḥ

— so too, O descendant of Dashārha, just as the experience of objects in a daydream is false, or what is seen in a dream is false, so likewise this worldly existence of the self is itself false.

Verse 56 (bhagavata.11.22.56)

अर्थे ह्यविद्यमानेऽपि संसृतिर्न निवर्तते । ध्यायतो विषयानस्य स्वप्नेऽनर्थागमो यथा ॥ 22.56 ॥

arthe hy avidyamāne ’pi saṁsṛtir na nivartate dhyāyato viṣayān asya svapne ’narthāgamo yathā

Even though the thing itself has no real existence, worldly bondage does not depart for one who keeps dwelling on sense objects — just as the misfortune experienced in a dream persists until one wakes.

Verse 57 (bhagavata.11.22.57)

तस्मादुद्धव मा भुङ्क्ष्व विषयानसदिन्द्रियैः । आत्माग्रहणनिर्भातं पश्य वैकल्पिकं भ्रमम् ॥ 22.57 ॥

tasmād uddhava mā bhuṅkṣva viṣayān asad-indriyaiḥ ātmāgrahaṇa-nirbhātaṁ paśya vaikalpikaṁ bhramam

Therefore, Uddhava, do not indulge sense objects through these unreal senses; look closely at this illusion of dualities, which arises only from failing to grasp the self.

Verse 58 (bhagavata.11.22.58)

क्षिप्तोऽवमानितोऽसद्भिः प्रलब्धोऽसूयितोऽथवा । ताडितः सन्निरुद्धो वा वृत्त्या वा परिहापितः ॥ 22.58 ॥

kṣipto ’vamānito ’sadbhiḥ pralabdho ’sūyito ’tha vā tāḍitaḥ sanniruddho vā vṛttyā vā parihāpitaḥ

One who is despised, insulted, cheated or envied by the wicked, or beaten, imprisoned, or deprived of his livelihood —

Verse 59 (bhagavata.11.22.59)

निष्ठ्युतो मूत्रितो वाज्ञैर्बहुधैवं प्रकम्पितः । श्रेयस्कामः कृच्छ्रगत आत्मनात्मानमुद्धरेत् ॥ 22.59 ॥

niṣṭhyuto mūtrito vājñair bahudhaivaṁ prakampitaḥ śreyas-kāmaḥ kṛcchra-gata ātmanātmānam uddharet

— or spat upon by fools, defiled with urine, and thus repeatedly harassed — even so, one who desires the highest good should, even amid such distress, lift himself up by his own effort.

Verse 60 (bhagavata.11.22.60)

श्रीउद्धव उवाच यथैवमनुबुध्येयं वद नो वदतां वर ॥ 22.60 ॥

śrī-uddhava uvāca yathaivam anubudhyeyaṁ vada no vadatāṁ vara

Shri Uddhava said: O best of speakers, tell me how I may come to understand this properly.

Verse 61 (bhagavata.11.22.61)

सुदुःसहमिमं मन्ये आत्मन्यसदतिक्रमम् । विदुषामपि विश्वात्मन् प्रकृतिर्हि बलीयसी । ऋते त्वद्धर्मनिरतान् शान्तांस्ते चरणालयान् ॥ 22.61 ॥

su-duḥsaham imaṁ manya ātmany asad-atikramam viduṣām api viśvātman prakṛtir hi balīyasī ṛte tvad-dharma-niratān śāntāṁs te caraṇālayān

O soul of the universe, I hold that tolerating unjust conduct from the wicked toward oneself is exceedingly hard, for even among the learned nature remains overwhelmingly strong — only those devoted to your dharma, at peace, and dwelling at your feet, are able to bear it.