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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 11 · General History · 31 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
  2. 2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
  3. 3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
  4. 4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
  5. 5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
  6. 6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.
Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›
Canto 11 · Chapter 22: Enumeration of the Elements of Material Creation
11.22.3911.22.41

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.22.40

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Kṛṣṇasince 11.22.37inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Kṛṣṇa → Uddhava

जन्म त्वात्मतया पुंस: सर्वभावेन भूरिद ।

विषयस्वीकृतिं प्राहुर्यथा स्वप्नमनोरथ: ॥ ४० ॥

janma tv ātmatayā puṁsaḥ

sarva-bhāvena bhūri-da

viṣaya-svīkṛtiṁ prāhur

yathā svapna-manorathaḥ

Translation

O most charitable Uddhava, what is called birth is simply a person’s total identification with a new body. One accepts the new body just as one completely accepts the experience of a dream or a fantasy as reality.

Read the purport on Vedabase.io

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.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Birth Is Identification With a New Body

  1. 1

    Birth means the spirit soul’s total acceptance of a new material body as oneself. It does not mean that a new living entity has been created.

  2. 2

    This identification goes beyond affection for the bodies of relatives or friends. One accepts one’s own body as completely as a dreamer accepts a dream as real.

  3. 3

    Bodily identification and the blind acceptance of bodily relationships as permanent form a prolonged dream. In this condition, one imagines oneself separate from the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Key points from the purport
  • Identification with one’s material body surpasses the mere affection and attachment one feels for the bodies of relatives or friends.
  • The word sarva-bhāvena here shows that one totally accepts the material body to be oneself, just as one completely accepts the experience of a dream as real.
  • The term birth, therefore, does not refer to the generation of a new entity but to the blind acceptance by the spirit soul of a new material body.

The purport's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Striving → Complete devotional trust. The Lord redirects Uddhava toward enduring loving service.

Chapters 21–29 of Canto 11: Spiritual practice culminating in bhakti-yoga. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 22: Enumeration of the Elements of Material Creation

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

From the death of one’s father and the birth of one’s son, a person can easily comprehend the rise and fall of his own body. The soul, who is the perceiver, is different from this body.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.22
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. janmabirth
  2. tuand
  3. ātmatayāby identification with oneself
  4. puṁsaḥof a person
  5. sarva-bhāvenacompletely
  6. bhūri-daO most charitable Uddhava
  7. viṣayaof the body
  8. svī-kṛtimthe acceptance
3

Key ideas in this verse

The subject this verse serves and the themes it speaks of.

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 11.22

    In this verse: “spirit soul”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 11.22

    In this verse: “material”

  • Sakhya · Sacred friendship

    The affection of companions and friends of the Lord. · Theme in SB 11.22

    In this verse: “friends”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Where do I treat a bodily identity or relationship as permanent?

Practice

Notice one bodily label you use for yourself and pause to remember that accepting a body does not create the spirit soul.

Live this todayBirth Is Identification With a New BodyThis verse's lesson: one practice and one question for today

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 11.22.40? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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