Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 16
Karma-vāda Critiqued, Varṇāśrama Reframed, and the Soul’s Distinction from the Body
अथैषाम् कर्मकर्तृणां भोक्तृणां सुखदु:खयो: । नानात्वमथ नित्यत्वं लोककालागमात्मनाम् ॥ १४ ॥ मन्यसे सर्वभावानां संस्था ह्यौत्पत्तिकी यथा । तत्तदाकृतिभेदेन जायते भिद्यते च धी: ॥ १५ ॥ एवमप्यङ्ग सर्वेषां देहिनां देहयोगत: । कालावयवत: सन्ति भावा जन्मादयोऽसकृत् ॥ १६ ॥
athaiṣām karma-kartṝṇāṁ bhoktṝṇāṁ sukha-duḥkhayoḥ nānātvam atha nityatvaṁ loka-kālāgamātmanām
My dear Uddhava, I have thus explained to you perfect knowledge. There are philosophers, however, who challenge My conclusion. They state that the natural position of the living entity is to engage in fruitive activities, and they see him as the enjoyer of the happiness and unhappiness that accrue from his own work. According to this materialistic philosophy, the world, time, the revealed scriptures and the self are all variegated and eternal, existing as a perpetual flow of transformations. Knowledge, moreover, cannot be one or eternal, because it arises from the different and changing forms of objects; thus knowledge itself is always subject to change. Even if you accept such a philosophy, My dear Uddhava, there will still be perpetual birth, death, old age and disease, since all living entities must accept a material body subject to the influence of time.
In this verse, according to Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, Lord Kṛṣṇa speaks the following to Uddhava. “My dear Uddhava, I have clearly established the actual goal of life in the instructions I have just imparted to you. There are those, however, who challenge My conclusion, especially the followers of Jaimini Kavi. If you are favorable to their understanding and thus do not accept My instructions, then kindly hear the following explanation.
FAQs
This verse challenges the assumption that there are many independent doers and enjoyers; it points toward a deeper analysis where agency and experience are conditioned and ultimately not separate from the Lord’s governing reality.
Kṛṣṇa is guiding Uddhava to examine common material assumptions—such as the permanence of the cosmos and time—so Uddhava can grasp the Bhagavata’s higher, soul-centered understanding beyond temporary phenomena.
When facing success or suffering, reflect that happiness and distress are temporary conditions; this reduces ego-based doership and helps one act responsibly while remaining spiritually steady.