वासुदेव उवाच ततस्तस्योपसंगृह्य पादौ प्रश्नान् सुदुर्वचान्। पप्रच्छ तांश्च धर्मान् स प्राह धर्मभृतां वरः॥
Touching the feet of that sage Brahmana asked him some very difficult questions. That foremost of all pious persons then described those duties that were referred to.
कश्यप उवाच कथं शरीरं च्यवते कथं चैवोपपद्यते। कथं कष्टाच्च संसारात् संसरन् परिमुच्यते॥
Kashyapa said How does the body dissolve away, and how is another is acquired? How does one become liberated after passing through a repeated round of painful re-births?
आत्मा च प्रकृति मुक्त्वा तच्छरीरं विमुञ्चति। शरीरतश्च निर्मुक्तः कथमन्यत् प्रपद्यते॥
Enjoying Nature for sometime, how does the individual Soul cast off the particular body? How does the Individual Soul, freed from the body, attain to what is different from it, (viz., Brahman)?
कथं शुभाशुभे चायं कर्मणी स्वकृते नरः। उपभुङ्क्ते क्व वा कर्म विदेहस्यावतिष्ठते॥
How does a human being enjoy the good and bad deeds done by him? Where do the acts exist of one that is devoid of body?
ब्राह्मण उवाच एवं संचोदितः सिद्धः प्रश्नांस्तान् प्रत्यभाषत। आनुपूर्येण वार्ष्णेय तन्मे निगदतः शृणु॥
The Brahmana said Thus urged by Kashyapa, the Liberated Sage answered those questions one after another. Do you listen to me, O hero of the Vrishni race, as I recite to you the answers he gave.
सिद्ध उवाच आयुः कीर्तिकराणीह यानि कृत्यानि सेवते। शरीरग्रहणे यस्मिंस्तेषु क्षीणेषु सर्वशः॥ आयुःक्षयपरीतात्मा विपरीतानि सेवते। बुद्धिावर्तते चास्य विनाशे प्रत्युपस्थिते॥
The Liberated Sage said, Upon the exhaustion of those deeds capable of prolonging life and bringing on fame which are done in a particular body that the Individual Soul assumes, the embodied Jiva, with the span of his life shortened, begins to do acts hostile to life and hcalth. On the approach of destruction, his understanding deviates from the proper course.
सत्त्वं बलं च कालं च विदित्वा चात्मनस्तथा। अतिवेलमुपाश्नाति स्वविरुद्धान्यनात्मवान्॥
The man of inipure soul, after even a correct understanding of his constitution and strength and of the season of both his own life and of the year, begins to eat at irregular intervals and to eat such food as is hostile to him.
यदायमतिकष्टानि सर्वाण्युपनिषेवते। अत्यथैमपि वा भुङ्क्ते न वा भुक्तो कदाचन॥
At such a time he does practices that are greatly harmful. He sometimes eats excessively and sometimes abstains altogether from food.
दुष्टान्नामिषपानं च यदन्योन्यविरोधि च। गुरु चाप्यमितं भुङ्क्तं नातिजीर्णेऽपि वा पुनः॥
He eats bad food or bad meat or takes bad drinks, or food that has been made up of hostile ingredients. He eats food that is heavy and more than what is beneficial, or before the food previously taken, has been digested.
व्यायाममतिमात्रं च व्यवायं चोपसेवते। सततं कर्मलाभाद् वा प्राप्तं वेगं विधारयेत्॥
He indulges in physical exercise and sexual pleasure in excess, or through avidity for work, suppresses the urgings of his corporeal organism even when they become pronounced.
रसाभियुक्तमन्नं वा दिवा स्वप्नं च सेवते। अपक्वानागते काले स्वयं दोषान् प्रकोपयेत्॥
Or, he taken juicy food or indulges in sleep during daytime. Food that is not properly digested, of itself excites the faults, when the times comes.
स्वदोषकोपनाद् रोगं लभते मरणान्तिकम्। अपि वोद्वन्धनादीनि परीतानि व्यवस्थति॥
From such excitement of the faults in his body, he gets disease ultimately bringing on death. Sometimes the person engages in unnatural deeds like strangling.
तस्य तैः कारणैर्जन्तोः शरीरं च्यवते तदा। जीवितं प्रोच्यमानं तदृ यथावदुपधारय॥
Through these causes the living body of the creature dissolves away. Understand correctly the manner as I declare it to you.
ऊष्मा प्रकुपितः काये तीव्रवायुसमीरितः। शरीरमनुपर्येत्य सर्वान् प्राणान् रुणद्धि वै॥
Urged on by the Wind which becomes violent, the heat in the body, becoming excited, and reaching every part of the body one after another, restrains all the vital airs.
अत्यर्थं बलवानूष्मा शरीरे परिकोपितः। भिनत्ति जीवस्थानानि मर्माणि विद्धि तत्त्वतः॥
Know truly that excited all over the body, the heat becomes very strong, and pierces every vital part where life may be said to live.
ततः सवेदनः सद्यो जीवः प्रच्यवते क्षरात्। शरीरं त्यजते जन्तुश्छिद्यमानेषु मर्मसु॥ वेदनाभिः परीतात्मा तद् विद्धि द्विजसत्तम। जातीमरणसंविग्नाः सततं सर्वजन्तवः॥
On account of this, the Individual Soul, feeling great pain, quickly takes leave of the body. Know, O foremost of twice-born ones, that when the vital parts of the body become thus afflicted, Individual Soul passes away from he body, suffering from great pain. All living creatures repeatedly suffer from birth and death.
दृश्यन्ते संत्यजन्तश्च शरीराणि द्विजर्षभ। गर्भसंक्रमणे चापि मर्मणामतिसर्पणे॥ तादृशीमेव लभते वेदनां मानवः पुनः। भिन्नसंधिरथ क्लेदमद्भिः स लभते नरः॥
It is seen, O chief of Brahman's, that the pain which is felt by a person when renouncing his bodies is like to what is felt by him when first entering the womb or when coming out of it. His joints become almost dislocated and he derives much distress from the waters.
यथा पञ्चसु भूतेषु सम्भूतत्वं नियच्छति। शैत्यात् प्रकुपित: काये तीव्रवायुसमीरितः॥
Moved by (another) violent wind, the wind in the body becomes excited through cold, and dissolves away the union of matter into its five primal elements.
यः स पञ्चसु भूतेषु प्राणापाने व्यवस्थितः। स गच्छत्यूर्ध्वगो वायुः कृच्छ्रान्मुक्त्वा शरीरिणः॥२२
That wind which lives in the vital airs called Prana and Apana occurring within this compound of the five primal elements, rushes upwards, from a situation of distress, leaving the embodied creature.
शरीरं च जहात्येवं निरुच्छ्वासश्च दृश्यते। स निरुष्मा निरुच्छ्वासो नि:श्रीको हतचेतनः॥
It is thus that the wind leaves the body. Then is seen breathlessness. The man then becomes destitute of heat, of breath, of beauty, and of consciousness.
ब्रह्मणा सम्परित्यक्तो मृत इत्युच्यते नरैः। स्रोतोभियैर्विजानाति इन्द्रियार्थाशरीरभृत्॥
Deserted by Brahma, the person is said to be dead. By those canals through which he perceives all sensuous objects, the bearer of the body no longer perceives them.
तैरेव न विजानाति प्राणानाहारसम्भवान्। तत्रैव कुरुते काये य: स जीवः सनातनः॥
The Individual Soul creates in the body in those canals the vital airs forned by the food.
तथा यद्यद् भवेद् युक्तं संनिपाते क्वचित् क्वचित्। तत्तन्मर्म विजानीहि शास्त्रदृष्टं हि तत् तथा॥
The elements gathered together become in certain parts firmly united. Know that those parts are called the vitals of the body. It is said so in the Shastras.
तेषु मर्मसु भिन्नेषु ततः स समुदीरयन्। आविश्य हृदयं जन्तोः सत्त्वं चाशु रुणद्धि वै॥
When those vital parts are cut, the Individual Soul, rising up, enters the heat of the living creature and restrains the principle of animation forthwith.
ततः सचेतनो जन्तु भिजानाति किंचन। तमसा संवृतज्ञानः संवृतेष्वेव मर्मसु। स जीवो निरधिष्ठानचाल्यते मातरिश्वना॥
The creature then, though still possessed of consciousness, fails to know anything. The vital part being all worked up, the knowledge of the living creature becomes overwhelmed by darkness.
ततः सतं महोच्छ्वासं भृशमुच्छ्वस्य दारुणम्। निष्क्रामन् कम्पयत्याशु तच्छरीरमचेतनम्॥ सजीव: प्रच्युतः कायात् कर्मभिः स्वैः समावृतः। अभितः स्वैः शुभैः पुण्यैः पापैर्वाप्युपपद्यते॥
The individual Soul then, who has been deprived of everything upon which to stay, is then agitated by the wind. He then, deeply breathing a long an painful breath, goes out speedily, making the inanimate body to tremble. Separated from the body, the Individual Soul, however, is surrounded by his deeds.
ब्राह्मणा ज्ञानसम्पन्ना यथावच्छ्रुतनिश्चयाः। इतरं कृतपुण्यं वा तं विजानन्ति लक्षणैः॥ यथान्धकारे खद्योतं लीयमानं ततस्ततः। चक्षुष्मन्तः प्रपश्यन्ति तथा च ज्ञानचक्षुषः॥ पश्यन्त्येवंविधं सिद्धा जीवं दिव्येन चक्षुषा। च्यवन्तं जायमानं च योनि चानुप्रवेशितम्॥ तस्य स्थानानि दृष्टानि त्रिविधानीह शास्त्रतः। कर्मभूमिरियं भूमिर्यत्र तिष्ठन्ति जन्तवः॥
He becomes equipped on all sides with all his auspicious deeds of merit and with all his sins. Brahmanas gifted with knowledge and equipped with the certain conclusions of the scriptures, know him, from marks, as to whether he is possessed of merit or with its demerit. Even as men having eyes see the firefly appearing and disappearing in the midst of darkness, men having the eye of knowledge and crowned with success of penances, see, with spiritual vision, the Individual Soul as he leaves the body, as he is re-born, and as he enters the womb. It is seen that the Individual Soul has three regions assigned to him eternally.
ततः शुभाशुभं कृत्वा लभन्ते सर्वदेहिनः। इहैवोच्चावचान् भोगान् प्राप्नुवन्ति स्वकर्मभिः॥
This world where creatures live is called the field of action. Performing acts, good or bad, all embodied creatures attain to the fruits thereof.
इहैवाशुभकर्माणः कर्मभिर्निरयं गताः। अवाग्गतिरियं कष्टा यत्र पच्यन्ति मानवाः। तस्मात् सुदुर्लभो मोक्षो रक्ष्यश्चात्मा ततो भृशम्॥
On account of their own decds, creatures acquirc even here superior or inferiors enjoyments. Doers of evil deeds here, on ! account of those deeds of theirs, attain to hell.
ऊर्ध्वं तु जन्तवो गत्वा येषु स्थानेष्ववस्थिताः। कीर्त्यमानानि तानीह तत्त्वतः संनिबोध मे॥
This condition of sinking with head downwards, in which creatures are boiled is one of great misery. It is such that a rescue therefrom is highly difficult. Indeed, one should try hard for saving himself from this misery.
तच्छ्रुत्वा नैष्ठिकी बुद्धिं बुद्ध्येथाः कर्मनिश्चयम्। तारारूपाणि सर्वाणि यत्रैतच्चन्द्रमण्डलम्॥
Those regions where creatures live when they ascend from this world, I shall now declare truly. Do you listen to me attentively.
यत्र विभ्राजते लोके स्वभासा सूर्यमण्डलम्। स्थानान्येतानि जानीहि जनानां पुण्यकर्मणाम्॥
By listening to what I say, you will acquire firmness of understanding and a clear apprehension of deeds. Know that even those are the regions of all creatures of righteous deeds, viz., the stellar worlds that shine in the sky, the lunar disc, and the solar disc as well that shines in the universe in its own light.
कर्मक्षयाच्च ते सर्वे च्यवन्ते वै पुनः पुनः। तत्रापि च विशेषोऽस्ति दिवि नीचोच्चमध्यमः॥
Upon the termination, again, of their merits, they fall away from those regions repeatedly. There is distinction of inferior, superior and middling happiness even in the celestial region.
न च तत्रापि संतोषो दृष्ट्रा दीप्ततरां श्रियम्। इत्येता गतयः सर्वाः पृथक्ते समुदीरिताः॥
There is discontent at sight of prosperity more burning than one's own even in the celestial region. Even these are the goals which I have mentioned in full.
उपपत्तिं तु वक्ष्यामि गर्भस्याहमतः परम्। तथा तन्मे निगदतः शृणुष्वावहितो द्विज॥
I shall, after this, describe to you the attainment by the Individual Soul of the condition of residence in the womb. Do you hear me, with rapt attention, O twice-born one, as I speak to you.