SB 11.25.6

SB 11.25.6

Devanagari

सन्निपातस्त्वहमिति ममेत्युद्धव या मति: । व्यवहार: सन्निपातो मनोमात्रेन्द्रियासुभि: ॥ ६ ॥

Verse text

sannipātas tv aham iti mamety uddhava yā matiḥ vyavahāraḥ sannipāto mano-mātrendriyāsubhiḥ

Synonyms

sannipātaḥ the combination of the modes ; tu and ; aham iti “I” ; mama iti “mine” ; uddhava O Uddhava ; which ; matiḥ mentality ; vyavahāraḥ ordinary activities ; sannipātaḥ the combination ; manaḥ by the mind ; mātrā the objects of perception ; indriya the senses ; asubhiḥ and the vital airs .

Translation

My dear Uddhava, the combination of all three modes is present in the mentality of “I” and “mine.” The ordinary transactions of this world, which are carried out through the agency of the mind, the objects of perception, the senses and the vital airs of the physical body, are also based on the combination of the modes.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

O Uddhava! Mixture of the guṇas is present in the mentality of “I” and “mine.” The ordinary transactions of this world, which are carried out through the agency of the mind, the objects of perception, the senses and the vital airs of the physical body, are also based on mixture of the guṇas. The conception of I and mine is a mixture of the guṇas. Action using the mind, sense objects, senses and life airs is also a mixture of the guṇas. When control of the mind, lust or anger becomes strong, then the person becomes control of the mind personified, or lust personified or anger personified. Ordinary activities of ordinary men, based on I and mine, are not accomplished by the jīva alone, since the jīva is never free of I and mine spontaneously, and has no trace of discrimination to think of what is proper or improper when blinded by lust or anger, with the conception of “I am so and so and this is my son.” Thus actions are accomplished using the mind, senses, sense objects and life airs in conjunction with sattva, rajas and tamas.

Purport

The illusory concept of “I” and “mine” occurs by the mixture of the three modes of nature. A person in goodness may feel, “I am peaceful.” One in passion may think, “I am lusty.” And one in ignorance may think, “I am angry.” Similarly, one may think “my peace,” “my lust” or “my anger.” One completely absorbed in the mentality of being peaceful could not work in the material world; he would lack any impulse to perform activity. Similarly, one absorbed in lust would be blinded without at least a tinge of peacefulness or restraint. One overwhelmed with anger could not function properly in the material world without the mixture of other qualities. Thus we find that a material mode does not occur in a pure, isolated form but rather is mixed with other modes, thereby making possible normal functioning within this world. Ultimately one should think, “I am an eternal servant of Lord Kṛṣṇa” and “My only possession is loving service to the Lord.” This is the pure state of consciousness, beyond the material modes of nature.