Page 62 - Metaphysical questions of life

“The different manifesta ons of body and senses among the living en -
es are due to material nature. There are 8,400,000 different species of
life, and these varie es are crea ons of the material nature. They arise
from the different sensual pleasures of the living en ty, who thus de-
sires to live in this body or that. When he is put into different bodies, he
enjoys different kinds of happiness and distress. His material happiness
and distress are due to his body, and not to himself as he is. In his origi-
nal state there is no doubt of enjoyment; therefore, that is his real
state. Because of the desire to lord it over material nature, he is in the
material world. In the spiritual world there is no such thing. The spiritu-
al world is pure, but in the material world everyone is struggling hard
to acquire different kinds of pleasures for the body. It might be more
clear to state that this body is the effect of the senses. The senses are
instruments for gra fying desire. Now, the sum total – body and instru-
ment senses – is offered by material nature, and as will be clear in the
next verse, the living en ty is blessed or damned with circumstances
according to his past desire and ac vity. According to one’s desires and
ac vi es, material nature places one in various residen al quarters.
The being himself is the cause of his a aining such residen al quarters
and his a endant enjoyment or suffering. Once placed in some par cu-
lar kind of body, he comes under the control of nature because the
body, being ma er, acts according to the laws of nature. At that me,
the living en ty has no power to change that law. Suppose an en ty is
put into the body of a dog. As soon as he is put into the body of a dog,
he must act like a dog. He cannot act otherwise. And if the living en ty
is put into the body of a hog, then he is forced to eat stool and act like
a hog. Similarly, if the living en ty is put into the body of a demigod, he
must act according to his body. This is the law of nature. But in all cir-
cumstances, the Supersoul is with the individual soul. That is explained
in the Vedas (Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 3.1.1) as follows: dvā suparṇā sayujā
sakhāyaḥ. The Supreme Lord is so kind upon the living en ty that He
always accompanies the individual soul and in all circumstances is pre-
sent as the Supersoul, or Paramātmā.” (Bg 13.21 – purport)

What is me?

To understand me, we need first to understand the basic structural
unit of the universe, the atom, described as the ul mate par cle. In

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