Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.31.8
उल्बेन संवृतस्तस्मिन्नन्त्रैश्च बहिरावृत: ।
आस्ते कृत्वा शिर: कुक्षौ भुग्नपृष्ठशिरोधर: ॥ ८ ॥
ulbena saṁvṛtas tasminn
[ulbena samvritas tasminn]
antraiś ca bahir āvṛtaḥ
[antraish cha bahir aavritah]
āste kṛtvā śiraḥ kukṣau
[aaste kritvaa shirah kukshau]
bhugna-pṛṣṭha-śirodharaḥ
[bhugna-prishtha-shirodharah]
Word-for-word
ulbena
—
by the amnion
saṁvṛtaḥ
—
enclosed
tasmin
—
in that place
antraiḥ
—
by the intestines
ca
—
and
bahiḥ
—
outside
āvṛtaḥ
—
covered
āste
—
he lies
kṛtvā
—
having put
śiraḥ
—
the head
kukṣau
—
towards the belly
bhugna
—
bent
pṛṣṭha
—
back
śiraḥ-dharaḥ
—
neck.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
ulbena saṁvṛtas tasminn
ulbena
by the amnion
saṁvṛtaḥ
enclosed
tasmin
in that place
antraiś ca bahir āvṛtaḥ
antraiḥ
by the intestines
ca
and
bahiḥ
outside
āvṛtaḥ
covered
āste kṛtvā śiraḥ kukṣau
āste
he lies
kṛtvā
having put
śiraḥ
the head
kukṣau
towards the belly
bhugna-pṛṣṭha-śirodharaḥ
bhugna
bent
pṛṣṭha
back
śiraḥ-dharaḥ
neck.
Placed within the amnion and covered outside by the intestines, the child remains lying on one side of the abdomen, his head turned towards his belly and his back and neck arched like a bow.
Purport
If a grown man were put into such a condition as the child within the abdomen, completely entangled in all respects, it would be impossible for him to live even for a few seconds. Unfortunately, we forget all these sufferings and try to be happy in this life, not caring for the liberation of the soul from the entanglement of birth and death. It is an unfortunate civilization in which these matters are not plainly discussed to make people understand the precarious condition of material existence.
— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
Gauḍīya
Translation
The fetus remains there, surrounded by a covering and outside that, by the entrails. Its head is near its stomach, with bent neck and back.
Its neck and back are crooked because of the covering.
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Time is the Lord's instrument, quietly grinding every arrangement we trust. The verse asks us to befriend this fact now, before it forces itself on us at the wrong moment. The verse anchors this in material existence.
Reflection Questions
- If you were honest about how much time you have left, what would you stop doing this week?
- Where could a small daily remembrance of death make today more honest?
My note
Source: vedabase.io