SB 11.3.39 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

अण्डेषु पेशिषु तरुष्वविनिश्चितेषु प्राणो हि जीवमुपधावति तत्र तत्र । सन्ने यदिन्द्रियगणेऽहमि च प्रसुप्ते कूटस्थ आशयमृते तदनुस्मृतिर्न: ॥ ३९ ॥

Verse text

aṇḍeṣu peśiṣu taruṣv aviniściteṣu prāṇo hi jīvam upadhāvati tatra tatra sanne yad indriya-gaṇe ’hami ca prasupte kūṭa-stha āśayam ṛte tad-anusmṛtir naḥ

Synonyms

aṇḍeṣu — in (species of life born from) eggs ; peśiṣu — in embryos ; taruṣu — in plants ; aviniściteṣu — in species of indeterminate origin (born from perspiration) ; prāṇaḥ — the vital air ; hi — indeed ; jīvam — the soul ; upadhāvati — follows ; tatra tatra — from one species to another ; sanne — they are merged ; yat — when ; indriya — gaṇe — all the senses ; ahami — the false ego ; ca — also ; prasupte — in deep sleep ; kūṭa — sthaḥ — unchanging ; āśayam — the subtle covering of contaminated consciousness, the liṅga-śarīra ; ṛte — without ; tat — of that ; anusmṛtiḥ — (there is) subsequent remembrance ; naḥ — our .

Translation

The spirit soul is born in many different species of life within the material world. Some species are born from eggs, others from embryos, others from the seeds of plants and trees, and others from perspiration. But in all species of life the prāṇa, or vital air, remains unchanging and follows the spirit soul from one body to another. Similarly, the spirit soul is eternally the same despite its material condition of life. We have practical experience of this. When we are absorbed in deep sleep without dreaming, the material senses become inactive, and even the mind and false ego are merged into a dormant condition. But although the senses, mind and false ego are inactive, one remembers upon waking that he, the soul, was peacefully sleeping.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Prāṇa follows the jīva in bodies born from eggs, wombs, seeds and perspiration. When the senses and ahaṅkāra cease to function in deep sleep, the fixed ātmā alone remains, without the covering of the subtle body, but with memory of the experience of deep sleep. The example of the previous verse is explained, showing the realization of ātmā’s changeless nature by destruction of the senses. The prāṇa clings to and follows the jīva in species born of eggs, wombs sees and perspiration. This example also shows the changeless nature of that realization, using a simile. The meaning is this. In the waking state the senses create a sense of change for the ātmā. In dream state the ahaṅkāra remains endowed with impressions. In deep sleep, the senses stop functioning and identity of “I” along with ahaṅkāra disappears. The unchanging ātmā (kūṭasthaḥ) remains. Why? Because it is without the covering of the subtle body (āśayam ṛte), because of absence of coverings which cause change. “With the destruction of everything up to ahaṅkāra, a void alone remains. How does the ātmā remain perceptible?” We, as the witness of deep sleep, have awareness of happiness devoid of particular knowledge. “I slept for that much time happily and did not know anything.” In this statement, there is awareness of ātmā in deep sleep because of no memory of non-existence. But because of no relationship with physical objects, the memory is not clear. Śruti says yad vai tan na paśyati paśyan vai draṣṭavyaṁ paśyati, na hi draṣṭur dṛṣṭer vipari-lopo vidyate: when one does not see the world, one sees the ātmā which should be seen; there is no destruction of the ātmā’s seeing. (Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad 4.3.23)

Purport

When a living entity is awake the material senses and mind are constantly active. Similarly, when one is sleeping the false ego recollects one’s waking experiences, and thus one experiences dreams or fragments of dreams while sleeping. But in the state of prasupti, or deep sleep, both the mind and the senses become inactive, and the false ego does not recall previous experiences or desires. The subtle mind and false ego are called liṅga-śarīra, or the subtle material body. This liṅga-śarīra is experienced in the form of temporary material designations such as “I am a rich man,” “I am a strong man,” “I am black,” “I am white,” “I am American,” “I am Chinese.” The sum total of one’s illusory conceptions of oneself is called ahaṅkāra, or false ego. And due to this illusory conception of life the living entity transmigrates from one species of life to another, as clearly explained in Bhagavad-gītā. The spirit soul, however, does not change its constitutional position of eternity, knowledge and bliss, although the soul may temporarily forget this position. To cite an analogous situation, if one dreams at night that he is walking in the forest, such a dream does not change one’s actual position of lying in bed within his apartment. Thus it is stated in this verse, kūṭa-stha āśayam ṛte: despite the transformations of the subtle body, the spirit soul does not change. Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī has given the following example to illustrate this point. Etāvantaṁ kālaṁ sukham aham asvāpsam, na kiṣcid avediṣam. One often thinks, “I was sleeping very peacefully, although I was not dreaming or aware of anything.” It can be logically understood that one cannot remember something of which he has had no experience. Therefore, since one remembers peacefully sleeping although there was no mental or sensual experience, such a memory should be understood to be a vague experience of the spirit soul. Śrīla Madhvācārya has explained that the demigods, who are a superior race of humanlike entities on the higher planetary systems of this universe, do not actually undergo the gross ignorance of deep sleep as do ordinary human beings. Because the demigods have superior intelligence, they are not merged into ignorance at the time of sleeping. In Bhagavad-gītā Lord Kṛṣṇa says, mattaḥ smṛtir jṣānam apohanaṁ ca. Sleep is apohanam, or forgetfulness. Sometimes by dreaming there is smṛti, or memory of one’s actual condition, although in a dream one may experience one’s family or friends in an altered, illusory state. But all such conditions of remembering and forgetting are due to the presence of the Supersoul within the heart. By the mercy of the Supersoul one can have a preliminary glimpse of the soul by remembering how one was peacefully resting even without mental or sensual experience. According to the authorized commentaries on this verse, aviniściteṣu means sveda-jeṣu, or born from perspiration. Śrīla Madhvācārya has pointed out, bhū-svedena hi prāyo jāyante: the earth’s dew is to be considered the perspiration of the earth, and various species of life are generated from dew. In the Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad (3.1.9) the situation of the soul in relation to prāṇa is explained: eṣo ’ṇur ātmā cetasā veditavyo yasmin prāṇaḥ paṣcadhā saṁviveśa prāṇaiś cittaṁ sarvam otaṁm prajānāṁ yasmin viśuddhe vibhavaty eṣa ātmā “The soul is atomic in size and can be perceived by perfect intelligence. This atomic soul is floating in the five kinds of air [ prāṇa, apāna, vyāna, samāna and udāna ]. The soul is situated within the heart, and it spreads its influence all over the body of the embodied living entities. When the soul is purified from the contamination of the five kinds of material air, its spiritual influence is exhibited.” Thus in the innumerable species of life the spiritual soul remains situated within prāṇa, or the material life air.