ERROR: Your browser does not support scripts.

yena—by whom (the Lord); idrsim—such; gatim—a condition; asau—that person (myself); dasa-masyah—ten months old; isa—O Lord; sangrahitah—was made to accept; puru-dayena—very merciful; bhavadrsena—incomparable; svena—own; eva—alone; tusyatu—may He be pleased; krtena—with His act; sah—that; dina-nathah—refuge of the fallen souls; kah—who; nama—indeed; tat—that mercy; prati—in return; vina—except with; anjalim—folded hands; asya—of the Lord; kuryat—can repay.

My dear Lord, by Your causeless mercy I am awakened to consciousness, although I am only ten months old. For this causeless mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the friend of all fallen souls, there is no way to express my gratitude but to pray with folded hands.

As stated in Bhagavad-gita, intelligence and forgetfulness are both supplied by the Supersoul sitting with the individual soul within the body. When He sees that a conditioned soul is very serious about getting out of the clutches of the material influence, the Supreme Lord gives intelligence internally as Supersoul and externally as the spiritual master, or, as an incarnation of the Personality of Godhead Himself, He helps by speaking instructions such as Bhagavad-gita. The Lord is always seeking the opportunity to reclaim the fallen souls to His abode, the kingdom of God. We should always feel very much obliged to the Personality of Godhead, for He is always anxious to bring us into the happy condition of eternal life. There is no sufficient means to repay the Personality of Godhead for His act of benediction; therefore, we can simply feel gratitude and pray to the Lord with folded hands. This prayer of the child in the womb may be questioned by some atheistic people. How can a child pray in such a nice way in the womb of his mother? Everything is possible by the grace of the Lord. The child is put into such a precarious condition externally, but internally he is the same, and the Lord is there. By the transcendental energy of the Lord, everything is possible.

SB3.31.19

TEXT 19

pasyaty ayam dhisanaya nanu sapta-vadhrih

sarirake dama-sariry aparah sva-dehe

yat-srstayasam tam aham purusam puranam

pasye bahir hrdi ca caityam iva pratitam

pasyati—sees; ayam—this living entity; dhisanaya—with intelligence; nanu—only; sapta-vadhrih—bound by the seven layers of material coverings; sarirake—agreeable and disagreeable sense perceptions; dama-sariri—having a body for self-control; aparah—another; sva-dehe—in his body; yat—by the Supreme Lord; srstaya—endowed; asam—was; tam—Him; aham—I; purusam—person; puranam—oldest; pasye—see; bahih—outside; hrdi—in the heart; ca—and; caityam—the source of the ego; iva—indeed; pratitam—recognized.

The living entity in another type of body sees only by instinct; he knows only the agreeable and disagreeable sense perceptions of that particular body. But I have a body in which I can control my senses and can understand my destination; therefore, I offer my respectful obeisances to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, by whom I have been blessed with this body and by whose grace I can see Him within and without.

The evolutionary process of different types of bodies is something like that of a fructifying flower. Just as there are different stages in the growth of a flower—the bud stage, the blooming stage and the full species of bodies in gradual evolution, and there is systematic progress from the lower species of life to the higher. The human form of life is supposed to be the highest, for it offers consciousness for getting out of the clutches of birth and death. The fortunate child in the womb of his mother realizes his superior position and is thereby distinguished from other bodies. Animals in bodies lower than that of the human being are conscious only as far as their bodily distress and happiness are concerned; they cannot think of more than their bodily necessities of life—eating, sleeping, mating and defending. But in the human form of life, by the grace of God, the consciousness is so developed that a man can evaluate his exceptional position and thus realize the self and the Supreme Lord.

The word dama-sariri means that we have a body in which we can control the senses and the mind. The complication of materialistic life is due to an uncontrolled mind and uncontrolled senses. One should feel grateful to the Supreme Personality of Godhead for having obtained such a nice human form of body, and one should properly utilize it. The distinction between an animal and a man is that the animal cannot control himself and has no sense of decency, whereas the human being has the sense of decency and can control himself. If this controlling power is not exhibited by the human being, then he is no better than an animal. By controlling the senses, or by the process of yoga regulation, one can understand the position of his self, the Supersoul, the world and their interrelation; everything is possible by controlling the senses. Otherwise, we are no better than animals.

Real self-realization by means of controlling the senses is explained herein. One should try to see the Supreme Personality of Godhead and one’s own self also. To think oneself the same as the Supreme is not self-realization. Here it is clearly explained that the Supreme Lord is anadi, or purana, and He has no other cause. The living entity is born of the Supreme Godhead as part and parcel. It is confirmed in the Brahma-samhita, anadir adir govindah: [Bs. 5.1] Govinda, the Supreme person, has no cause. He is unborn. But the living entity is born of Him. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gita, mamaivamsah: both the living entity and the Supreme Lord are unborn, but it has to be understood that the supreme cause of the part and parcel is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Brahma-samhita therefore says that everything has come from the Supreme Personality of Godhead (sarva-karana-karanam [Bs. 5.1]). The Vedanta-sutra confirms this also. Janmady asya yatah: [Bhag. 1.1.1] the Absolute Truth is the original source of everyone’s birth. Krsna also says in Bhagavad-gita, aham sarvasya prabhavah: “I am the source of birth of everything, including Brahma and Lord Siva and the living entities.” This is self-realization. One should know that he is under the control of the Supreme Lord and not think that he is fully independent. Otherwise, why should he be put into conditional life?

SB3.31.20

TEXT 20

so ’ham vasann api vibho bahu-duhkha-vasam

garbhan na nirjigamise bahir andha-kupe

yatropayatam upasarpati deva-maya

mithya matir yad-anu samsrti-cakram etat

sah aham—I myself; vasan—living; api—although; vibho—O Lord; bahu-duhkha—with many miseries; vasam—in a condition; garbhat—from the abdomen; na—not; nirjigamise—I wish to depart; bahih—outside; andha-kupe—in the blind well; yatra—where; upayatam—one who goes there; upasarpati—she captures; deva-maya—the external energy of the Lord; mithya—false; matih—identification; yat—which maya; anu—according to; samsrti—of continual birth and death; cakram—cycle; etat—this.

Therefore, my Lord, although I am living in a terrible condition, I do not wish to depart from my mother’s abdomen to fall again into the blind well of materialistic life. Your external energy, called deva-maya, at once captures the newly born child, and immediately false identification, which is the beginning of the cycle of continual birth and death, begins.

As long as the child is within the womb of his mother, he is in a very precarious and horrible condition of life, but the benefit is that he revives pure consciousness of his relationship with the Supreme Lord and prays for deliverance. But once he is outside the abdomen, when a child is born, maya, or the illusory energy, is so strong that he is immediately overpowered into considering his body to be his self. Maya means “illusion,” or that which is actually not. In the material world, everyone is identifying with his body. This false egoistic consciousness of “I am this body” at once develops after the child comes out of the womb. The mother and other relatives are awaiting the child, and as soon as he is born, the mother feeds him, and everyone takes care of him. The living entity soon forgets his position and becomes entangled in bodily relationships. The entire material existence is entanglement in this bodily conception of life. Real knowledge means to develop the consciousness of “I am not this body. I am spirit soul, an eternal part and parcel of the Supreme Lord.” Real knowledge entails renunciation, or nonacceptance of this body as the self.

By the influence of maya, the external energy, one forgets everything just after birth. Therefore the child is praying that he prefers to remain within the womb rather than come out. It is said that Sukadeva Gosvami, on this consideration, remained for sixteen years within the womb of his mother; he did not want to be entangled in false bodily identification. After cultivating such knowledge within the womb of his mother, he came out at the end of sixteen years and immediately left home so that he might not be captured by the influence of maya. The influence of maya is also explained in Bhagavad-gita as insurmountable. But insurmountable maya can be overcome simply by Krsna consciousness. That is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (7.14): mam eva ye prapadyante mayam etam taranti te. Whoever surrenders unto the lotus feet of Krsna can get out of this false conception of life. By the influence of maya only, one forgets his eternal relationship with Krsna and identifies himself with his body and the by-products of the body—namely wife, children, society, friendship and love. Thus he becomes a victim of the influence of maya, and his materialistic life of continued birth and death becomes still more stringent.

SB3.31.21

TEXT 21

tasmad aham vigata-viklava uddharisya

atmanam asu tamasah suhrdatmanaiva

bhuyo yatha vyasanam etad aneka-randhram

ma me bhavisyad upasadita-visnu-padah

tasmat—therefore; aham—I; vigata—ceased; viklavah—agitation; uddharisye—shall deliver; atmanam—myself; asu—quickly; tamasah—from the darkness; suhrda atmana—with friendly intelligence; eva—indeed; bhuyah—again; yatha—so that; vyasanam—plight; etat—this; aneka-randhram—entering many wombs; ma—not; me—my; bhavisyat—may occur; upasadita—placed (in my mind); visnu-padah—the lotus feet of Lord Visnu.

Therefore, without being agitated any more, I shall deliver myself from the darkness of nescience with the help of my friend, clear consciousness. Simply by keeping the lotus feet of Lord Visnu in my mind, I shall be saved from entering into the wombs of many mothers for repeated birth and death.

The miseries of material existence begin from the very day when the spirit soul takes shelter in the ovum and sperm of the mother and father, they continue after he is born from the womb, and then they are further prolonged. We do not know where the suffering ends. It does not end, however, by one’s changing his body. The change of body is taking place at every moment, but that does not mean that we are improving from the fetal condition of life to a more comfortable condition. The best thing is, therefore, to develop Krsna consciousness. Here it is stated, upasadita-visnu-padah. This means realization of Krsna consciousness. One who is intelligent, by the grace of the Lord, and develops Krsna consciousness, is successful in his life because simply by keeping himself in Krsna consciousness, he will be saved from the repetition of birth and death.

The child prays that it is better to remain within the womb of darkness and be constantly absorbed in Krsna consciousness than to get out and again fall a victim to the illusory energy. The illusory energy acts within the abdomen as well as outside the abdomen, but the trick is that one should remain Krsna conscious, and then the effect of such a horrible condition cannot act unfavorably upon him. In Bhagavad-gita it is said that one’s intelligence is his friend, and the same intelligence can also be his enemy. Here also the same idea is repeated: suhrdatmanaiva, friendly intelligence. Absorption of intelligence in the personal service of Krsna and full consciousness of Krsna always are the path of self-realization and liberation. Without being unnecessarily agitated, if we take to the process of Krsna consciousness by constantly chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, the cycle of birth and death can be stopped for good.

It may be questioned herein how the child can be fully Krsna conscious within the womb of the mother without any paraphernalia with which to execute Krsna consciousness. It is not necessary to arrange for paraphernalia to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Visnu. The child wants to remain within the abdomen of its mother and at the same time wants to become free from the clutches of maya. One does not need any material arrangement to cultivate Krsna consciousness. One can cultivate Krsna consciousness anywhere and everywhere, provided he can always think of Krsna. The maha-mantra, Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, can be chanted even within the abdomen of one’s mother. One can chant while sleeping, while working, while imprisoned in the womb or while outside. This Krsna consciousness cannot be checked in any circumstance. The conclusion of the child’s prayer is: “Let me remain in this condition; although it is very miserable, it is better not to fall a victim to maya again by going outside.”

SB3.31.22

TEXT 22

kapila uvaca

evam krta-matir garbhe

dasa-masyah stuvann rsih

sadyah ksipaty avacinam

prasutyai suti-marutah

kapilah uvaca—Lord Kapila said; evam—thus; krta-matih—desiring; garbhe—in the womb; dasa-masyah—ten-month-old; stuvan—extolling; rsih—the living entity; sadyah—at that very time; ksipati—propels; avacinam—turned downward; prasutyai—for birth; suti-marutah—the wind for childbirth.

Lord Kapila continued: The ten-month-old living entity has these desires even while in the womb. But while he thus extols the Lord, the wind that helps parturition propels him forth with his face turned downward so that he may be born.

SB3.31.23

TEXT 23

tenavasrstah sahasa

krtvavak sira aturah

viniskramati krcchrena

nirucchvaso hata-smrtih

SYNONYMS

tena—by that wind; avasrstah—pushed downward; sahasa—suddenly; krtva—turned; avak—downward; sirah—his head; aturah—suffering; viniskramati—he comes out; krcchrena—with great trouble; nirucchvasah—breathless; hata—deprived of; smrtih—memory.

TRANSLATION

Pushed downward all of a sudden by the wind, the child comes out with great trouble, head downward, breathless and deprived of memory due to severe agony.

PURPORT

The word krcchrena means “with great difficulty.” When the child comes out of the abdomen through the narrow passage, due to pressure there the breathing system completely stops, and due to agony the child loses his memory. Sometimes the trouble is so severe that the child comes Out dead or almost dead. One can imagine what the pangs of birth are like. The child remains for ten months in that horrible condition within the abdomen, and at the end of ten months he is forcibly pushed out. In Bhagavad-gita the Lord points out that a person who is serious about advancement in spiritual consciousness should always consider the four pangs of birth, death, disease and old age. The materialist advances in many ways, but he is unable to stop these four principles of suffering inherent in material existence.

SB3.31.24

TEXT 24

patito bhuvy asrn-misrah

vistha-bhur iva cestate

roruyati gate jnane

viparitam gatim gatah

patitah—fallen; bhuvi—on the earth; asrk—with blood; misrah—smeared; vistha-bhuh—a worm; iva—like; cestate—he moves his limbs; roruyati—cries loudly; gate—being lost; jnane—his wisdom; viparitam—the opposite; gatim—state; gatah—gone to.

The child thus falls on the ground, smeared with stool and blood, and plays just like a worm germinated from the stool. He loses his superior knowledge and cries under the spell of maya.

SB3.31.25

TEXT 25

para-cchandam na vidusa

pusyamano janena sah

anabhipretam apannah

pratyakhyatum anisvarah

SYNONYMS

para-chandam—the desire of another; na—not; vidusa—understanding; pusyamanah—being maintained; janena—by persons; sah—he; anabhipretam—into undesirable circumstances; apannah—fallen; pratyakhyatum—to refuse; anisvarah—unable.

TRANSLATION

After coming out of the abdomen, the child is given to the care of persons who are unable to understand what he wants, and thus he is nursed by such persons. Unable to refuse whatever is given to him, he falls into undesirable circumstances.

PURPORT

Within the abdomen of the mother, the nourishment of the child was being carried on by nature’s own arrangement. The atmosphere within the abdomen was not at all pleasing, but as far as the child’s feeding was concerned, it was being properly done by the laws of nature. But upon coming out of the abdomen the child falls into a different atmosphere. He wants to eat one thing, but something else is given to him because no one knows his actual demand, and he cannot refuse the undesirables given to him. Sometimes the child cries for the mother’s breast, but because the nurse thinks that it is due to pain within his stomach that he is crying, she supplies him some bitter medicine. The child does not want it, but he cannot refuse it. He is put in very awkward circumstances, and the suffering continues.

SB3.31.26

TEXT 26

sayito ’suci-paryanke

jantuh svedaja-dusite

nesah kanduyane ’nganam

asanotthana-cestane

sayitah—laid down; asuci-paryanke—on a foul bed; jantuh—the child; sveda-ja—with creatures born from sweat; dusite—infested; na isah—incapable of; kanduyane—scratching; anganam—his limbs; asana—sitting; utthana—standing; cestane—or moving.