Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.22.41
Mukti· LiberationForgetfulness Does Not Mean We Never Existed
“Just as a person experiencing a dream or daydream does not remember his previous dreams or daydreams, a person situated in his present body, although having existed prior to it, thinks that he has only recently come into being.”
What the purport teaches
- A person in the present body usually forgets previous existence, just as a dreamer forgets earlier dreams. Thus one thinks one has only recently come into being.
- Through the mystic power of jāti-smara, one may remember a previous body. Such exceptions do not change the usual condition of forgetfulness.
- Conditioned souls commonly measure their existence by the age of the present body. Thinking that they did not exist before this birth prevents understanding the soul’s actual situation.
Try this today
When thinking of your age today, distinguish the age of your present body from your existence as a soul.
Ask yourself
Do I assume that my existence began with this body simply because I cannot remember anything earlier?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
From Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.