FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.15.7

देहेन देहिनो राजन् देहाद्देहोऽभिजायते । बीजादेव यथा बीजं देह्यर्थ इव शाश्वत: ॥ ७ ॥
dehena dehino rājan
[dehena dehino raajan]
dehād deho ’bhijāyate
[dehaad deho ’bhijaayate]
bījād eva yathā bījaṁ
[beejaad eva yathaa beejam]
dehy artha iva śāśvataḥ
[dehy artha iva shaashvatah]
Word-for-word
dehena — by the body dehinaḥ — of the father possessing a material body rājan — O King dehāt — from the body (of the mother) dehaḥ — another body abhijāyate — takes birth bījāt — from one seed eva — indeed yathā — just as bījam — another seed dehī — a person who has accepted a material body arthaḥ — the material elements iva — like śāśvataḥ — eternal.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
dehena dehino rājan
dehena
by the body
dehinaḥ
of the father possessing a material body
rājan
O King
dehād deho ’bhijāyate
dehāt
from the body (of the mother)
dehaḥ
another body
bījād eva yathā bījaṁ
abhijāyate
takes birth
bījāt
from one seed
eva
indeed
dehy artha iva śāśvataḥ
yathā
just as
bījam
another seed
dehī
a person who has accepted a material body
arthaḥ
the material elements
iva
like
śāśvataḥ
eternal.
As from one seed another seed is generated, O King, so from one body [the body of the father], through another body [the body of the mother], a third body is generated [the body of a son]. As the elements of the material body are eternal, the living entity who appears through these material elements is also eternal.
Purport

From Bhagavad-gītā we understand that there are two energies, namely the superior energy and inferior energy. Inferior energy consists of the five gross and three subtle material elements. The living entity, who represents the superior energy, appears in different types of bodies through these elements by the manipulation or supervision of the material energy. Actually both the material and spiritual energies — matter and spirit — exist eternally as potencies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The potent entity is the Supreme Person. Since the spiritual energy, the living being, who is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, desires to enjoy this material world, the Lord gives him a chance to accept different types of material bodies and enjoy or suffer in different material conditions. Factually, the spiritual energy, the living entity who desires to enjoy material things, is manipulated by the Supreme Lord. The so-called father and mother have nothing to do with the living entity. As a result of his own choice and karma, the living being takes different bodies through the agency of so-called fathers and mothers.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Just as from one seed another seed is generated, O King, so by the body of the father another body, a son, is produced through the body of the mother. (Why do you lament, since the body is still here?) But the object called the jīva is eternal. “What you said is true. I, a father, created by the Lord, produced a son, who is now dead. Therefore I lament.” The two sages respond. By the body of the father, the body of the son is born from the body of a mother, just as a seed is born from another seed. Since the body of the son which you produced is present before you now, why do you lament? This is the intention of the statement. “But I am lamenting because the jīva is not longer present.” They reply. The jīva is eternal. It is not produced by you. Thus you have no relationship at all with it.
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
As seed produces seed through soil, body produces body through mother — the elements are eternal but the soul is also eternal, distinct from the body. Inheritance of body is not inheritance of self.
Reflection Questions
  • Where do I treat what I inherited (looks, traits, possessions) as my actual self?
  • What in me is irreducible to lineage?
📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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