FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.31.47

तस्मान्न कार्य: सन्त्रासो न कार्पण्यं न सम्भ्रम: । बुद्ध्वा जीवगतिं धीरो मुक्तसङ्गश्चरेदिह ॥ ४७ ॥
tasmān na kāryaḥ santrāso
[tasmaan na kaaryah santraaso]
na kārpaṇyaṁ na sambhramaḥ
[na kaarpanyam na sambhramah]
buddhvā jīva-gatiṁ dhīro
[buddhvaa jeeva-gatim dheero]
mukta-saṅgaś cared iha
[mukta-sangash chared iha]
tasmāt — on account of death na — not kāryaḥ — should be done santrāsaḥ — horror na — not kārpaṇyam — miserliness na — not sambhramaḥ — eagerness for material gain buddhvā — realizing jīva-gatim — the true nature of the living entity dhīraḥ — steadfast mukta-saṅgaḥ — free from attachment caret — one should move about iha — in this world.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
tasmān na kāryaḥ santrāso
tasmāt
on account of death
na
not
kāryaḥ
should be done
santrāsaḥ
horror
na kārpaṇyaṁ na sambhramaḥ
na
not
kārpaṇyam
miserliness
na
not
sambhramaḥ
eagerness for material gain
buddhvā jīva-gatiṁ dhīro
buddhvā
realizing
jīva-gatim
the true nature of the living entity
dhīraḥ
steadfast
mukta-saṅgaś cared iha
mukta-saṅgaḥ
free from attachment
caret
one should move about
iha
in this world.
Therefore, one should not view death with horror, nor have recourse to defining the body as soul, nor give way to exaggeration in enjoying the bodily necessities of life. Realizing the true nature of the living entity, one should move about in the world free from attachment and steadfast in purpose.

A sane person who has understood the philosophy of life and death is very upset upon hearing of the horrible, hellish condition of life in the womb of the mother or outside of the mother. But one has to make a solution to the problems of life. A sane man should understand the miserable condition of this material body. Without being unnecessarily upset, he should try to find out if there is a remedy. The remedial measures can be understood when one associates with persons who are liberated. It must be understood who is actually liberated. The liberated person is described in Bhagavad-gītā: one who engages in uninterrupted devotional service to the Lord, having surpassed the stringent laws of material nature, is understood to be situated in Brahman.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is beyond the material creation. It is admitted even by impersonalists like Śaṅkarācārya that Nārāyaṇa is transcendental to this material creation. As such, when one actually engages in the service of the Lord in various forms, either Nārāyaṇa or Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa or Sītā-Rāma, he is understood to be on the platform of liberation. The Bhāgavatam also confirms that liberation means to be situated in one’s constitutional position. Since a living entity is eternally the servitor of the Supreme Lord, when one seriously and sincerely engages in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, he is situated in the position of liberation. One should try to associate with a liberated person, and then the problems of life, namely birth and death, can be solved.

While discharging devotional service in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one should not be miserly. He should not unnecessarily show that he has renounced this world. Actually, renunciation is not possible. If one renounces his palatial building and goes to a forest, there is actually no renunciation, for the palatial building is the property of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the forest is also the property of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If he changes from one property to another, that does not mean that he renounces; he was never the proprietor of either the palace or the forest. Renunciation necessitates renouncing the false understanding that one can lord it over material nature. When one renounces this false attitude and renounces the puffed-up position that he is also God, that is real renunciation. Otherwise, there is no meaning of renunciation. Rūpa Gosvāmī advises that if one renounces anything which could be applied in the service of the Lord and does not use it for that purpose, that is called phalgu-vairāgya, insufficient or false renunciation. Everything belongs to the Supreme Personality of Godhead; therefore everything can be engaged in the service of the Lord; nothing should be used for one’s sense gratification. That is real renunciation. Nor should one unnecessarily increase the necessities of the body. We should be satisfied with whatever is offered and supplied by Kṛṣṇa without much personal endeavor. We should spend our time executing devotional service in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is the solution to the problem of life and death.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Because there is no real birth and death, one should not be horrified, miserable, or eager to enjoy in the world. Understanding the goal of the jīva, with intelligence one should move in this world free from attachment. Since one understands that the ātmā does not take birth or die (tasmāt), one should not be horrified.
Detachment in this verse is not cold rejection but clear seeing. Real renunciation is loosening the grip of 'mine' on things and people we never truly owned anyway. The verse anchors this in devotional service to the Lord.
Reflection Questions
  • Which attachment, if you were honest, has been quietly running your decisions?
  • What single 'mine' could you release this week as a small experiment?
📝 My note

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