Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.3.39
Mukti· LiberationDeep Sleep Offers a Glimpse of Soul
“The spirit soul is born in many different species of life within the material world. Some species are born from eggs, others from embryos, others from the seeds of plants and trees, and others from perspiration. But in all species of life the prāṇa, or vital air, remains unchanging and follows the spirit soul from one body to another. Similarly, the spirit soul is eternally the same despite its material condition of life. We have practical experience of this. When we are absorbed in deep sleep without dreaming, the material senses become inactive, and even the mind and false ego are merged into a dormant condition. But although the senses, mind and false ego are inactive, one remembers upon waking that he, the soul, was peacefully sleeping.”
What the purport teaches
- False ego is the sum of our illusory conceptions of ourselves, including temporary material designations. Despite changes of body, the soul retains its constitutional position of eternity, knowledge and bliss.
- In deep, dreamless sleep, the senses, mind and false ego become inactive. Remembering afterward that we slept peacefully offers a vague experience of the soul beyond mental and sensory activity.
- Remembering and forgetting depend on the presence of the Supersoul within the heart. By the Supersoul's mercy, remembering peaceful sleep can give us a preliminary glimpse of the soul.
Try this today
Recall a time you woke feeling that you had slept peacefully without dreaming. Spend a minute considering how the soul remained present while the mind and senses were inactive.
Ask yourself
What does remembering peaceful sleep suggest about my existence beyond the active mind and senses?
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.