Lord Kapila's Instructions on the Movements of the Living Entities

Verse 1 (bhagavata.3.31.1)

श्रीभगवानुवाच कर्मणा दैवनेत्रेण जन्तुर्देहोपपत्तये । स्त्रियाः प्रविष्ट उदरं पुंसो रेतःकणाश्रयः ॥ 31.1 ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur dehopapattaye striyāḥ praviṣṭa udaraṁ puṁso retaḥ-kaṇāśrayaḥ

Sri Bhagavan said: By his own action, under the eye of providence, the soul, in order to obtain a body, enters the womb of a woman, taking shelter in a particle of the man's seed.

Verse 2 (bhagavata.3.31.2)

कललं त्वेकरात्रेण पञ्चरात्रेण बुद्बुदम् । दशाहेन तु कर्कन्धूः पेश्यण्डं वा ततः परम् ॥ 31.2 ॥

kalalaṁ tv eka-rātreṇa pañca-rātreṇa budbudam daśāhena tu karkandhūḥ peśy aṇḍaṁ vā tataḥ param

On the first night it becomes a mere mixture; by the fifth night, a bubble; by the tenth day, something like a berry; and after that, a lump of flesh or an egg-like form.

Verse 3 (bhagavata.3.31.3)

मासेन तु शिरो द्वाभ्यां बाह्वङ्घ्र्याद्यङ्गविग्रहः । नखलोमास्थिचर्माणि लिङ्गच्छिद्रोद्भवस्त्रिभिः ॥ 31.3 ॥

māsena tu śiro dvābhyāṁ bāhv-aṅghry-ādy-aṅga-vigrahaḥ nakha-lomāsthi-carmāṇi liṅga-cchidrodbhavas tribhiḥ

In a month the head forms; in two months, the shape of arms, legs and other limbs; and in three months, the nails, body hair, bones, skin, along with the genital organ and the body's other openings.

Verse 4 (bhagavata.3.31.4)

चतुर्भिर्धातवः सप्त पञ्चभिः क्षुत्तृडुद्भवः । षड्भिर्जरायुणा वीतः कुक्षौ भ्राम्यति दक्षिणे ॥ 31.4 ॥

caturbhir dhātavaḥ sapta pañcabhiḥ kṣut-tṛḍ-udbhavaḥ ṣaḍbhir jarāyuṇā vītaḥ kukṣau bhrāmyati dakṣiṇe

In four months the body's seven constituent elements form; in five months hunger and thirst arise; and in six months, wrapped in its amniotic covering, it begins to move on the right side of the abdomen.

Verse 5 (bhagavata.3.31.5)

मातुर्जग्धान्नपानाद्यैरेधद्धातुरसम्मते । शेते विण्मूत्रयोर्गर्ते स जन्तुर्जन्तुसम्भवे ॥ 31.5 ॥

mātur jagdhānna-pānādyair edhad-dhātur asammate śete viṇ-mūtrayor garte sa jantur jantu-sambhave

Nourished on the food and drink taken in by its mother, that being lies in that vile pit of stool and urine — the very breeding-ground of worms.

Verse 6 (bhagavata.3.31.6)

कृमिभिः क्षतसर्वाङ्गः सौकुमार्यात्प्रतिक्षणम् । मूर्च्छामाप्नोत्युरुक्लेशस्तत्रत्यैः क्षुधितैर्मुहुः ॥ 31.6 ॥

kṛmibhiḥ kṣata-sarvāṅgaḥ saukumāryāt pratikṣaṇam mūrcchām āpnoty uru-kleśas tatratyaiḥ kṣudhitair muhuḥ

Its whole tender body gnawed moment by moment by worms, again and again bitten by those hungry creatures, it falls, in great suffering, into unconsciousness.

Verse 7 (bhagavata.3.31.7)

कटुतीक्ष्णोष्णलवणरूक्षाम्लादिभिरुल्बणैः । मातृभुक्तैरुपस्पृष्टः सर्वाङ्गोत्थितवेदनः ॥ 31.7 ॥

kaṭu-tīkṣṇoṣṇa-lavaṇa- rūkṣāmlādibhir ulbaṇaiḥ mātṛ-bhuktair upaspṛṣṭaḥ sarvāṅgotthita-vedanaḥ

Touched by the sharp foods eaten by its mother — bitter, pungent, hot, salty, dry, sour and the like — pain rises through all its limbs.

Verse 8 (bhagavata.3.31.8)

उल्बेन संवृतस्तस्मिन्नन्त्रैश्च बहिरावृतः । आस्ते कृत्वा शिरः कुक्षौ भुग्नपृष्ठशिरोधरः ॥ 31.8 ॥

ulbena saṁvṛtas tasminn antraiś ca bahir āvṛtaḥ āste kṛtvā śiraḥ kukṣau bhugna-pṛṣṭha-śirodharaḥ

Enclosed within the amniotic membrane and covered without by the intestines, it lies there with its head bent toward its belly, back and neck curved like a bow.

Verse 9 (bhagavata.3.31.9)

अकल्पः स्वाङ्गचेष्टायां शकुन्त इव पञ्जरे । तत्र लब्धस्मृतिर्दैवात्कर्म जन्मशतोद्भवम् । स्मरन्दीर्घमनुच्छ्वासं शर्म किं नाम विन्दते ॥ 31.9 ॥

akalpaḥ svāṅga-ceṣṭāyāṁ śakunta iva pañjare tatra labdha-smṛtir daivāt karma janma-śatodbhavam smaran dīrgham anucchvāsaṁ śarma kiṁ nāma vindate

Unable to stir its own limbs, like a bird shut in a cage, if by chance it there recovers the memory of deeds spanning a hundred past births, then, sighing at length, what peace could it possibly find?

Verse 10 (bhagavata.3.31.10)

आरभ्य सप्तमान्मासाल्लब्धबोधोऽपि वेपितः । नैकत्रास्ते सूतिवातैर्विष्ठाभूरिव सोदरः ॥ 31.10 ॥

ārabhya saptamān māsāl labdha-bodho ’pi vepitaḥ naikatrāste sūti-vātair viṣṭhā-bhūr iva sodaraḥ

Though it has gained awareness from the seventh month onward, tossed by the winds that stir toward delivery, it cannot stay in one place — like a worm born in that very same womb.

Verse 11 (bhagavata.3.31.11)

नाथमान ऋषिर्भीतः सप्तवध्रिः कृताञ्जलिः । स्तुवीत तं विक्लवया वाचा येनोदरेऽर्पितः ॥ 31.11 ॥

nāthamāna ṛṣir bhītaḥ sapta-vadhriḥ kṛtāñjaliḥ stuvīta taṁ viklavayā vācā yenodare ’rpitaḥ

Frightened, bound within its seven wrappings, that being, with folded hands, appeals in a faltering voice to the very One who placed it there in the womb.

Verse 12 (bhagavata.3.31.12)

जन्तुरुवाच तस्योपसन्नमवितुं जगदिच्छयात्त- नानातनोर्भुवि चलच्चरणारविन्दम् । सोऽहं व्रजामि शरणं ह्यकुतोभयं मे येनेदृशी गतिरदर्श्यसतोऽनुरूपा ॥ 31.12 ॥

jantur uvāca tasyopasannam avituṁ jagad icchayātta- nānā-tanor bhuvi calac-caraṇāravindam so ’haṁ vrajāmi śaraṇaṁ hy akuto-bhayaṁ me yenedṛśī gatir adarśy asato ’nurūpā

The soul said: To Him who, by His own will, takes on various forms to protect this world, whose lotus feet move upon the earth, to that shelter — free from all fear — I go; for it is from Him alone that I have received this state, so fitting for my own unrighteous deeds.

Verse 13 (bhagavata.3.31.13)

यस्त्वत्र बद्ध इव कर्मभिरावृतात्मा भूतेन्द्रियाशयमयीमवलम्ब्य मायाम् । आस्ते विशुद्धमविकारमखण्डबोधम् आतप्यमानहृदयेऽवसितं नमामि ॥ 31.13 ॥

yas tv atra baddha iva karmabhir āvṛtātmā bhūtendriyāśayamayīm avalambya māyām āste viśuddham avikāram akhaṇḍa-bodham ātapyamāna-hṛdaye ’vasitaṁ namāmi

He who here appears bound, as it were, by his own works, his self veiled beneath maya woven of the elements, senses and mind — yet who, wholly pure, unchanging, and possessed of unbroken awareness, resides within this burning heart — to Him I bow.

Verse 14 (bhagavata.3.31.14)

यः पञ्चभूतरचिते रहितः शरीरे च्छन्नोऽयथेन्द्रियगुणार्थचिदात्मकोऽहम् । तेनाविकुण्ठमहिमानमृषिं तमेनं वन्दे परं प्रकृतिपूरुषयोः पुमांसम् ॥ 31.14 ॥

yaḥ pañca-bhūta-racite rahitaḥ śarīre cchanno ’yathendriya-guṇārtha-cid-ātmako ’ham tenāvikuṇṭha-mahimānam ṛṣiṁ tam enaṁ vande paraṁ prakṛti-pūruṣayoḥ pumāṁsam

He who is free of this body composed of the five elements, while I myself lie wrongly covered beneath a self made of senses, gunas and their objects — to that seer, whose glory knows no bound, the Supreme Person beyond both prakriti and its souls, I offer my praise.

Verse 15 (bhagavata.3.31.15)

यन्माययोरुगुणकर्मनिबन्धनेऽस्मिन् सांसारिके पथि चरंस्तदभिश्रमेण । नष्टस्मृतिः पुनरयं प्रवृणीत लोकं युक्त्या कया महदनुग्रहमन्तरेण ॥ 31.15 ॥

yan-māyayoru-guṇa-karma-nibandhane ’smin sāṁsārike pathi caraṁs tad-abhiśrameṇa naṣṭa-smṛtiḥ punar ayaṁ pravṛṇīta lokaṁ yuktyā kayā mahad-anugraham antareṇa

Wandering this worldly path — bound by the great actions born of His maya's gunas — this being loses his very memory through that same weariness; without His great grace, by what means could he ever choose his true self again?

Verse 16 (bhagavata.3.31.16)

ज्ञानं यदेतददधात्कतमः स देवस् त्रैकालिकं स्थिरचरेष्वनुवर्तितांशः । तं जीवकर्मपदवीमनुवर्तमानास् तापत्रयोपशमनाय वयं भजेम ॥ 31.16 ॥

jñānaṁ yad etad adadhāt katamaḥ sa devas trai-kālikaṁ sthira-careṣv anuvartitāṁśaḥ taṁ jīva-karma-padavīm anuvartamānās tāpa-trayopaśamanāya vayaṁ bhajema

Who other than that very Bhagavan could have granted this knowledge — He who, spanning all three times, follows within every moving and unmoving thing through His own portion? Let us, who follow this path of the jiva's karma, worship Him alone, for the quenching of the threefold suffering.

Verse 17 (bhagavata.3.31.17)

देह्यन्यदेहविवरे जठराग्निनासृग्- विण्मूत्रकूपपतितो भृशतप्तदेहः । इच्छन्नितो विवसितुं गणयन्स्वमासान् निर्वास्यते कृपणधीर्भगवन्कदा नु ॥ 31.17 ॥

dehy anya-deha-vivare jaṭharāgnināsṛg- viṇ-mūtra-kūpa-patito bhṛśa-tapta-dehaḥ icchann ito vivasituṁ gaṇayan sva-māsān nirvāsyate kṛpaṇa-dhīr bhagavan kadā nu

Fallen within the inward cavity of another's body, scorched by the fire of digestion, sunk into a pit of blood, stool and urine, its body ever burning — O Lord, when, counting its own months and yearning to escape from here, will this poor, wretched soul be set free?

Verse 18 (bhagavata.3.31.18)

येनेदृशीं गतिमसौ दशमास्य ईश संग्राहितः पुरुदयेन भवादृशेन । स्वेनैव तुष्यतु कृतेन स दीननाथः को नाम तत्प्रति विनाञ्जलिमस्य कुर्यात् ॥ 31.18 ॥

yenedṛśīṁ gatim asau daśa-māsya īśa saṅgrāhitaḥ puru-dayena bhavādṛśena svenaiva tuṣyatu kṛtena sa dīna-nāthaḥ ko nāma tat-prati vināñjalim asya kuryāt

O Lord, by whose boundless compassion one such as I have gained this awareness at merely ten months, may that peerless friend of the fallen be pleased with His own act; who, indeed, could repay it save with folded hands?

Verse 19 (bhagavata.3.31.19)

पश्यत्ययं धिषणया ननु सप्तवध्रिः शारीरके दमशरीर्यपरः स्वदेहे । यत्सृष्टयासं तमहं पुरुषं पुराणं पश्ये बहिर्हृदि च चैत्यमिव प्रतीतम् ॥ 31.19 ॥

paśyaty ayaṁ dhiṣaṇayā nanu sapta-vadhriḥ śārīrake dama-śarīry aparaḥ sva-dehe yat-sṛṣṭayāsaṁ tam ahaṁ puruṣaṁ purāṇaṁ paśye bahir hṛdi ca caityam iva pratītam

This being, bound in its seven wrappings, perceives through its intellect, in this its own body, only pleasant and unpleasant sensations, being other [than the seer]; yet I, by whose creation I have come to be, behold that ancient Person present both outside and within the heart, recognized there as the deity of consciousness.

Verse 20 (bhagavata.3.31.20)

सोऽहं वसन्नपि विभो बहुदुःखवासं गर्भान्न निर्जिगमिषे बहिरन्धकूपे । यत्रोपयातमुपसर्पति देवमाया मिथ्या मतिर्यदनु संसृतिचक्रमेतत् ॥ 31.20 ॥

so ’haṁ vasann api vibho bahu-duḥkha-vāsaṁ garbhān na nirjigamiṣe bahir andha-kūpe yatropayātam upasarpati deva-māyā mithyā matir yad-anu saṁsṛti-cakram etat

Therefore, O all-pervading Lord, though I dwell in this abode full of so many sorrows, I do not wish to go out into that blind well [of worldly life], where, the moment one arrives, Your deva-maya breeds a false self-conception, and in its wake this very wheel of samsara turns.

Verse 21 (bhagavata.3.31.21)

तस्मादहं विगतविक्लव उद्धरिष्य आत्मानमाशु तमसः सुहृदात्मनैव । भूयो यथा व्यसनमेतदनेकरन्ध्रं मा मे भविष्यदुपसादितविष्णुपादः ॥ 31.21 ॥

tasmād ahaṁ vigata-viklava uddhariṣya ātmānam āśu tamasaḥ suhṛdātmanaiva bhūyo yathā vyasanam etad aneka-randhraṁ mā me bhaviṣyad upasādita-viṣṇu-pādaḥ

Therefore, casting off my anxiety, I shall now, with the help of pure understanding as my own true friend, swiftly draw myself out of this darkness, so that this plight of entering many wombs need not befall me again — provided I keep the feet of Vishnu ever placed within my mind.

Verse 22 (bhagavata.3.31.22)

कपिल उवाच एवं कृतमतिर्गर्भे दशमास्यः स्तुवन्नृषिः । सद्यः क्षिपत्यवाचीनं प्रसूत्यै सूतिमारुतः ॥ 31.22 ॥

kapila uvāca evaṁ kṛta-matir garbhe daśa-māsyaḥ stuvann ṛṣiḥ sadyaḥ kṣipaty avācīnaṁ prasūtyai sūti-mārutaḥ

Kapila said: Thus resolved, the being, now ten months in the womb, is still extolling the Lord when suddenly the wind of delivery turns him face downward and propels him forth to be born.

Verse 23 (bhagavata.3.31.23)

तेनावसृष्टः सहसा कृत्वावाक्शिर आतुरः । विनिष्क्रामति कृच्छ्रेण निरुच्छ्वासो हतस्मृतिः ॥ 31.23 ॥

tenāvasṛṣṭaḥ sahasā kṛtvāvāk śira āturaḥ viniṣkrāmati kṛcchreṇa nirucchvāso hata-smṛtiḥ

Suddenly thrust out by that wind, its head turned downward, that suffering being emerges with great difficulty, its breath cut off, its memory now lost.

Verse 24 (bhagavata.3.31.24)

पतितो भुव्यसृङ्मिश्रः विष्ठाभूरिव चेष्टते । रोरूयति गते ज्ञाने विपरीतां गतिं गतः ॥ 31.24 ॥

patito bhuvy asṛṅ-miśraḥ viṣṭhā-bhūr iva ceṣṭate rorūyati gate jñāne viparītāṁ gatiṁ gataḥ

Falling to the ground, smeared with blood, it thrashes about like a worm born of filth; its wisdom now gone, come to a state the very reverse of before, it wails aloud.

Verse 25 (bhagavata.3.31.25)

परच्छन्दं न विदुषा पुष्यमाणो जनेन सः । अनभिप्रेतमापन्नः प्रत्याख्यातुमनीश्वरः ॥ 31.25 ॥

para-cchandaṁ na viduṣā puṣyamāṇo janena saḥ anabhipretam āpannaḥ pratyākhyātum anīśvaraḥ

Raised by people who cannot fathom what another wants, and themselves unwise, that being, fallen into unwanted circumstances, remains powerless to refuse them.

Verse 26 (bhagavata.3.31.26)

शायितोऽशुचिपर्यङ्के जन्तुः स्वेदज-दूषिते । नेशः कण्डूयनेऽङ्गानामासनोत्थानचेष्टने ॥ 31.26 ॥

śāyito ’śuci-paryaṅke jantuḥ svedaja-dūṣite neśaḥ kaṇḍūyane ’ṅgānām āsanotthāna-ceṣṭane

Laid upon a filthy bedding infested with creatures born of sweat, that infant is powerless even to scratch its own limbs, let alone sit up, rise, or move about.

Verse 27 (bhagavata.3.31.27)

तुदन्त्यामत्वचं दंशा मशका मत्कुणादयः । रुदन्तं विगतज्ञानं कृमयः कृमिकं यथा ॥ 31.27 ॥

tudanty āma-tvacaṁ daṁśā maśakā matkuṇādayaḥ rudantaṁ vigata-jñānaṁ kṛmayaḥ kṛmikaṁ yathā

That infant, its skin still tender, is bitten by gnats, mosquitoes, bugs and the rest, just as a large worm is bitten by smaller ones; and, bereft of wisdom, it can do nothing but weep.

Verse 28 (bhagavata.3.31.28)

इत्येवं शैशवं भुक्त्वा दुःखं पौगण्डमेव च । अलब्धाभीप्सितोऽज्ञानादिद्धमन्युः शुचार्पितः ॥ 31.28 ॥

ity evaṁ śaiśavaṁ bhuktvā duḥkhaṁ paugaṇḍam eva ca alabdhābhīpsito ’jñānād iddha-manyuḥ śucārpitaḥ

Having thus lived through the sufferings of infancy, he attains boyhood, and there too, failing to obtain what he desires, he grows, out of ignorance, kindled with anger and given over to grief.

Verse 29 (bhagavata.3.31.29)

सह देहेन मानेन वर्धमानेन मन्युना । करोति विग्रहं कामी कामिष्वन्ताय चात्मनः ॥ 31.29 ॥

saha dehena mānena vardhamānena manyunā karoti vigrahaṁ kāmī kāmiṣv antāya cātmanaḥ

As the body grows, so grow pride and wrath along with it, and that lustful man, to his own soul's ruin, takes up enmity with other lustful men.

Verse 30 (bhagavata.3.31.30)

भूतैः पञ्चभिरारब्धे देहे देह्यबुधोऽसकृत् । अहंममेत्यसद्ग्राहः करोति कुमतिर्मतिम् ॥ 31.30 ॥

bhūtaiḥ pañcabhir ārabdhe dehe dehy abudho ’sakṛt ahaṁ mamety asad-grāhaḥ karoti kumatir matim

Established within this body made of the five elements, the ignorant being, again and again, clings to unreal things, saying 'I' and 'mine' — this notion born of his own poor understanding.

Verse 31 (bhagavata.3.31.31)

तदर्थं कुरुते कर्म यद्बद्धो याति संसृतिम् । योऽनुयाति ददत्क्लेशमविद्याकर्मबन्धनः ॥ 31.31 ॥

tad-arthaṁ kurute karma yad-baddho yāti saṁsṛtim yo ’nuyāti dadat kleśam avidyā-karma-bandhanaḥ

For that same body's sake he performs actions by which, bound, he wanders on through samsara; and that body, itself arising from the bondage of ignorance and past action, follows after him, giving him nothing but suffering.

Verse 32 (bhagavata.3.31.32)

यद्यसद्भिः पथि पुनः शिश्नोदरकृतोद्यमैः । आस्थितो रमते जन्तुस्तमो विशति पूर्ववत् ॥ 31.32 ॥

yady asadbhiḥ pathi punaḥ śiśnodara-kṛtodyamaiḥ āsthito ramate jantus tamo viśati pūrvavat

If this being should once more settle into the company of the unrighteous, whose every effort is spent for the genitals and the belly, and take his pleasure there, he enters again into that same darkness, just as before.

Verse 33 (bhagavata.3.31.33)

सत्यं शौचं दया मौनं बुद्धिः श्रीर्ह्रीर्यशः क्षमा । शमो दमो भगश्चेति यत्सङ्गाद्याति सङ्क्षयम् ॥ 31.33 ॥

satyaṁ śaucaṁ dayā maunaṁ buddhiḥ śrīr hrīr yaśaḥ kṣamā śamo damo bhagaś ceti yat-saṅgād yāti saṅkṣayam

From that company, truthfulness, purity, compassion, gravity, intelligence, prosperity, modesty, fame, forbearance, control of mind, control of the senses, and good fortune — all of these come to ruin.

Verse 34 (bhagavata.3.31.34)

तेष्वशान्तेषु मूढेषु खण्डितात्मस्वसाधुषु । सङ्गं न कुर्याच्छोच्येषु योषित्क्रीडामृगेषु च ॥ 31.34 ॥

teṣv aśānteṣu mūḍheṣu khaṇḍitātmasv asādhuṣu saṅgaṁ na kuryāc chocyeṣu yoṣit-krīḍā-mṛgeṣu ca

Therefore one should never keep company with those who are restless, foolish, cut off from self-knowledge, wicked, pitiable — mere dancing animals in the hands of women.

Verse 35 (bhagavata.3.31.35)

न तथास्य भवेन्मोहो बन्धश्चान्यप्रसङ्गतः । योषित्सङ्गाद्यथा पुंसो यथा तत्सङ्गिसङ्गतः ॥ 31.35 ॥

na tathāsya bhaven moho bandhaś cānya-prasaṅgataḥ yoṣit-saṅgād yathā puṁso yathā tat-saṅgi-saṅgataḥ

No attachment to any other object binds and bewilders a man as much as attachment to a woman does — or as much as the company of men who are themselves attached to women.

Verse 36 (bhagavata.3.31.36)

प्रजापतिः स्वां दुहितरं दृष्ट्वा तद्रूपधर्षितः । रोहिद्भूतां सोऽन्वधावदृक्षरूपी हतत्रपः ॥ 31.36 ॥

prajāpatiḥ svāṁ duhitaraṁ dṛṣṭvā tad-rūpa-dharṣitaḥ rohid-bhūtāṁ so ’nvadhāvad ṛkṣa-rūpī hata-trapaḥ

Prajapati Brahma, beholding his own daughter, was overcome by her beauty, and when she took the form of a doe, he, shameless, ran after her himself in the form of a stag.

Verse 37 (bhagavata.3.31.37)

तत्सृष्टसृष्टसृष्टेषु को न्वखण्डितधीः पुमान् । ऋषिं नारायणमृते योषिन्मय्येह मायया ॥ 31.37 ॥

tat-sṛṣṭa-sṛṣṭa-sṛṣṭeṣu ko nv akhaṇḍita-dhīḥ pumān ṛṣiṁ nārāyaṇam ṛte yoṣin-mayyeha māyayā

Among all those beings born, generation after generation, from Brahma, who — save the sage Narayana — has ever kept his mind unmoved before that maya arrayed as woman here in this world?

Verse 38 (bhagavata.3.31.38)

बलं मे पश्य मायायाः स्त्रीमय्या जयिनो दिशाम् । या करोति पदाक्रान्तान्भ्रूविजृम्भेण केवलम् ॥ 31.38 ॥

balaṁ me paśya māyāyāḥ strī-mayyā jayino diśām yā karoti padākrāntān bhrūvi-jṛmbheṇa kevalam

Behold the strength of My maya, arrayed as woman, that conquers even the conquerors of every quarter — who, by the mere arching of her brows alone, brings men to lie prostrate at her feet.

Verse 39 (bhagavata.3.31.39)

सङ्गं न कुर्यात्प्रमदासु जातु योगस्य पारं परमारुरुक्षुः । मत्सेवया प्रतिलब्धात्मलाभो वदन्ति या निरयद्वारमस्य ॥ 31.39 ॥

saṅgaṁ na kuryāt pramadāsu jātu yogasya pāraṁ param ārurukṣuḥ mat-sevayā pratilabdhātma-lābho vadanti yā niraya-dvāram asya

One who aspires to the very summit of yoga, and who through service to Me has already gained knowledge of the self, should never seek the company of women, for they are declared to be, for the advancing practitioner, the very gateway to hell.

Verse 40 (bhagavata.3.31.40)

योपयाति शनैर्माया योषिद्देवविनिर्मिता । तामीक्षेतात्मनो मृत्युं तृणैः कूपमिवावृतम् ॥ 31.40 ॥

yopayāti śanair māyā yoṣid deva-vinirmitā tām īkṣetātmano mṛtyuṁ tṛṇaiḥ kūpam ivāvṛtam

That maya, fashioned by the Lord and slowly drawing near in the form of a woman, one should recognize as one's own death — like a well concealed under grass.

Verse 41 (bhagavata.3.31.41)

यां मन्यते पतिं मोहान्मन्मायामृषभायतीम् । स्त्रीत्वं स्त्रीसङ्गतः प्राप्तो वित्तापत्यगृहप्रदम् ॥ 31.41 ॥

yāṁ manyate patiṁ mohān man-māyām ṛṣabhāyatīm strītvaṁ strī-saṅgataḥ prāpto vittāpatya-gṛha-pradam

The being who, as a result of attachment to a woman, has attained the state of womanhood, in delusion takes that same maya of Mine, now come in the form of a man, to be her husband — one who seems to bestow wealth, children and a home.

Verse 42 (bhagavata.3.31.42)

तामात्मनो विजानीयात्पत्यपत्यगृहात्मकम् । दैवोपसादितं मृत्युं मृगयोर्गायनं यथा ॥ 31.42 ॥

tām ātmano vijānīyāt paty-apatya-gṛhātmakam daivopasāditaṁ mṛtyuṁ mṛgayor gāyanaṁ yathā

A woman should recognize that maya, taking the form of husband, children and home, as her own death arranged by providence — just as the hunter's sweet song is, for the deer, none other than death itself.

Verse 43 (bhagavata.3.31.43)

देहेन जीवभूतेन लोकाल्लोकमनुव्रजन् । भुञ्जान एव कर्माणि करोत्यविरतं पुमान् ॥ 31.43 ॥

dehena jīva-bhūtena lokāl lokam anuvrajan bhuñjāna eva karmāṇi karoty avirataṁ pumān

That person, become a jiva, wanders through this body from world to world, and, all the while enjoying the fruits of his actions, keeps performing more of them without cease.

Verse 44 (bhagavata.3.31.44)

जीवो ह्यस्यानुगो देहो भूतेन्द्रियमनोमयः । तन्निरोधोऽस्य मरणमाविर्भावस्तु सम्भवः ॥ 31.44 ॥

jīvo hy asyānugo deho bhūtendriya-mano-mayaḥ tan-nirodho ’sya maraṇam āvirbhāvas tu sambhavaḥ

This body, made of the elements, senses and mind, which follows the jiva — its cessation is called that being's death, while its manifestation is called birth.

Verse 45 (bhagavata.3.31.45)

द्रव्योपलब्धिस्थानस्य द्रव्येक्षायोग्यता यदा । तत्पञ्चत्वमहंमानादुत्पत्तिर्द्रव्यदर्शनम् ॥ 31.45 ॥

dravyopalabdhi-sthānasya dravyekṣāyogyatā yadā tat pañcatvam ahaṁ-mānād utpattir dravya-darśanam

When the very seat of perceiving objects [the body] becomes incapable of perceiving them, that is death; and when the self-conceit that identifies with that physical form arises, that is called birth.

Verse 46 (bhagavata.3.31.46)

यथाक्ष्णोर्द्रव्यावयवदर्शनायोग्यता यदा । तदैव चक्षुषो द्रष्टुर्द्रष्टृत्वायोग्यतानयोः ॥ 31.46 ॥

yathākṣṇor dravyāvayava- darśanāyogyatā yadā tadaiva cakṣuṣo draṣṭur draṣṭṛtvāyogyatānayoḥ

Just as, when the eye becomes incapable of discerning the features of an object, that incapacity seems to belong equally to the eye and to the seer who sees through it — though the seer's own power of sight is never in truth destroyed.

Verse 47 (bhagavata.3.31.47)

तस्मान्न कार्यः सन्त्रासो न कार्पण्यं न सम्भ्रमः । बुद्ध्वा जीवगतिं धीरो मुक्तसङ्गश्चरेदिह ॥ 31.47 ॥

tasmān na kāryaḥ santrāso na kārpaṇyaṁ na sambhramaḥ buddhvā jīva-gatiṁ dhīro mukta-saṅgaś cared iha

Therefore one should feel neither dread, nor self-pity, nor confusion; understanding this true movement of the soul, the steady person should move through this world free of all attachment.

Verse 48 (bhagavata.3.31.48)

सम्यग्दर्शनया बुद्ध्या योगवैराग्ययुक्तया । मायाविरचिते लोके चरेन्न्यस्य कलेवरम् ॥ 31.48 ॥

samyag-darśanayā buddhyā yoga-vairāgya-yuktayā māyā-viracite loke caren nyasya kalevaram

With an intellect possessed of right vision, strengthened by yoga and dispassion, one should move about in this world fashioned by maya, treating the body itself as but a secondary thing set aside.