Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.29.59
Ūti· What drives us to actThe Subtle Body Carries Karma Forward
“The expert knowers of the Vedic conclusions say that one enjoys or suffers the results of his past activities. But practically it is seen that the body that performed the work in the last birth is already lost. So how is it possible to enjoy or suffer the reactions of that work in a different body?”
What the purport teaches
- The King asks how a person can experience reactions to past work when the body that performed it is gone. The purport addresses the demand for evidence of past karma.
- Although the gross body comes to an end, the subtle body continues. It carries the soul and the results of actions to the next gross body.
- The gross body depends on the subtle body and experiences enjoyment and suffering accordingly. The subtle body continues carrying the soul until liberation from gross material bondage.
Try this today
Write one sentence explaining why the end of the gross body does not end the results of its actions.
Ask yourself
How does the continuation of the subtle body help me understand responsibility for my actions?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.