Shloka 12
The Fall of Purañjana and the Supersoul as the Eternal Friend
Purañjana-Upākhyāna Culmination
तस्यां सन्दह्यमानायां सपौर: सपरिच्छद: । कौटुम्बिक: कुटुम्बिन्या उपातप्यत सान्वय: ॥ १२ ॥
tasyāṁ sandahyamānāyāṁ sapauraḥ saparicchadaḥ kauṭumbikaḥ kuṭumbinyā upātapyata sānvayaḥ
As the city burned, all the citizens and attendants, along with the whole household—sons, grandsons, wives, and other kin—were caught within the flames. King Purañjana was thus overwhelmed with sorrow.
There are many parts of the body — the senses, the limbs, the skin, the muscles, blood, marrow, etc. — and all these are considered here figuratively as sons, grandsons, citizens and dependents. When the body is attacked by the viṣṇu-jvāra, the fiery condition becomes so acute that sometimes one remains in a coma. This means that the body is in such severe pain that one becomes unconscious and cannot feel the miseries taking place within the body. Indeed, the living entity becomes so helpless at the time of death that, although unwilling, he is forced to give up the body and enter another. In Bhagavad-gītā it is stated that man may, by scientific advancement, improve the temporary living conditions, but that he cannot avoid the pangs of birth, old age, disease and death. These are under the control of the Supreme Personality of Godhead through the agency of material nature. A foolish person cannot understand this simple fact. Now people are very busy trying to find petroleum in the midst of the ocean. They are very anxious to make provisions for the future petroleum supply, but they do not make any attempts to ameliorate the conditions of birth, old age, disease and death. Thus a person in ignorance, not knowing anything about his own future life, is certainly defeated in all his activities.
FAQs
This verse shows that when one’s “city” (embodied life) is destroyed, a person bound to wife, dependents, possessions, and social identity suffers intensely because the mind is entangled in them.
In the narrative it is King Purañjana; allegorically, he represents the conditioned soul who identifies with home, family, and possessions.
Cultivate responsible duty without possessiveness—strengthen devotion and spiritual identity so inevitable changes (loss, death, upheaval) do not devastate the heart.