FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.31.21

तस्मादहं विगतविक्लव उद्धरिष्य आत्मानमाशु तमस: सुहृदात्मनैव । भूयो यथा व्यसनमेतदनेकरन्ध्रं मा मे भविष्यदुपसादितविष्णुपाद: ॥ २१ ॥
tasmād ahaṁ vigata-viklava uddhariṣya
[tasmaad aham vigata-viklava uddharishya]
ātmānam āśu tamasaḥ suhṛdātmanaiva
[aatmaanam aashu tamasah suhridaatmanaiva]
bhūyo yathā vyasanam etad aneka-randhraṁ
[bhooyo yathaa vyasanam etad aneka-randhram]
mā me bhaviṣyad upasādita-viṣṇu-pādaḥ
[maa me bhavishyad upasaadita-vishnu-paadah]
tasmāt — therefore aham — I vigata — ceased viklavaḥ — agitation uddhariṣye — shall deliver ātmānam — myself āśu — quickly tamasaḥ — from the darkness suhṛdā ātmanā — with friendly intelligence eva — indeed bhūyaḥ — again yathā — so that vyasanam — plight etat — this aneka-randhram — entering many wombs mā — not me — my bhaviṣyat — may occur upasādita — placed (in my mind) viṣṇu-pādaḥ — the lotus feet of Lord Viṣṇu.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
tasmād ahaṁ vigata-viklava uddhariṣya
tasmāt
therefore
aham
I
vigata
ceased
viklavaḥ
agitation
uddhariṣye
shall deliver
ātmānam āśu tamasaḥ suhṛdātmanaiva
ātmānam
myself
āśu
quickly
tamasaḥ
from the darkness
suhṛdā ātmanā
with friendly intelligence
eva
indeed
bhūyo yathā vyasanam etad aneka-randhraṁ
bhūyaḥ
again
yathā
so that
vyasanam
plight
etat
this
aneka-randhram
entering many wombs
mā me bhaviṣyad upasādita-viṣṇu-pādaḥ
mā
not
me
my
bhaviṣyat
may occur
upasādita
placed (in my mind)
viṣṇu-pādaḥ
the lotus feet of Lord Viṣṇu.
Therefore, without being agitated any more, I shall deliver myself from the darkness of nescience with the help of my friend, clear consciousness. Simply by keeping the lotus feet of Lord Viṣṇu in my mind, I shall be saved from entering into the wombs of many mothers for repeated birth and death.

The miseries of material existence begin from the very day when the spirit soul takes shelter in the ovum and sperm of the mother and father, they continue after he is born from the womb, and then they are further prolonged. We do not know where the suffering ends. It does not end, however, by one’s changing his body. The change of body is taking place at every moment, but that does not mean that we are improving from the fetal condition of life to a more comfortable condition. The best thing, therefore, is to develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Here it is stated, upasādita-viṣṇu-pādaḥ. This means realization of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. One who is intelligent, by the grace of the Lord, and develops Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is successful in his life because simply by keeping himself in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he will be saved from the repetition of birth and death.

The child prays that it is better to remain within the womb of darkness and be constantly absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness than to get out and again fall a victim to the illusory energy. The illusory energy acts within the abdomen as well as outside the abdomen, but the trick is that one should remain Kṛṣṇa conscious, and then the effect of such a horrible condition cannot act unfavorably upon him. In Bhagavad-gītā it is said that one’s intelligence is his friend, and the same intelligence can also be his enemy. Here also the same idea is repeated: suhṛdātmanaiva, friendly intelligence. Absorption of intelligence in the personal service of Kṛṣṇa and full consciousness of Kṛṣṇa always are the path of self-realization and liberation. Without being unnecessarily agitated, if we take to the process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness by constantly chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, the cycle of birth and death can be stopped for good.

It may be questioned herein how the child can be fully Kṛṣṇa conscious within the womb of the mother without any paraphernalia with which to execute Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is not necessary to arrange for paraphernalia to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu. The child wants to remain within the abdomen of its mother and at the same time wants to become free from the clutches of māyā. One does not need any material arrangement to cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness. One can cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness anywhere and everywhere, provided he can always think of Kṛṣṇa. The mahā-mantra, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, can be chanted even within the abdomen of one’s mother. One can chant while sleeping, while working, while imprisoned in the womb or while outside. This Kṛṣṇa consciousness cannot be checked in any circumstance. The conclusion of the child’s prayer is: “Let me remain in this condition; although it is very miserable, it is better not to fall a victim to māyā again by going outside.”

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Therefore, having destroyed suffering here, I will deliver myself quickly from saṁsāra by my friend the intelligence, given by you, so that I, having surrendered to your lotus feet, will not again have the misfortune of a material body. “So, what have you decided?” Even in the womb, I have given up suffering. I will deliver myself from saṁsāra (tamasaḥ) by my friend intelligence, the chariot driver, which has been given by you, so that I will not in the future have the misfortune of again having a body of nine gates (aneka-randhram). Where will you get the ingredients for this practice? I have taken shelter (upasādita) of your lotus feet with remembering and chanting.
The verse points at the threefold miseries not to depress the reader but to interrupt the fantasy that the next arrangement will finally be different. The pivot here is Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Reflection Questions
  • Which recurring problem in your life keeps promising 'just one more fix' before it ends?
  • Where is māyā's hand most active in your week, and how could you cooperate with reality instead?
📝 My note

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