Shloka 19
The Fall of Purañjana and the Supersoul as the Eternal Friend
Purañjana-Upākhyāna Culmination
न मय्यनाशिते भुङ्क्ते नास्नाते स्नाति मत्परा । मयि रुष्टे सुसन्त्रस्ता भर्त्सिते यतवाग्भयात् ॥ १९ ॥
na mayy anāśite bhuṅkte nāsnāte snāti mat-parā mayi ruṣṭe susantrastā bhartsite yata-vāg bhayāt
King Purañjana then recalled his past dealings with his wife: she would not eat until he had finished, nor bathe until he had bathed. So devoted was she to him that when he sometimes grew angry and chastised her, she would, out of fear, restrain her words, remain silent, and endure his misconduct.
A wife is always supposed to be submissive to her husband. Submission, mild behavior and subservience are qualities in a wife which make a husband very thoughtful of her. For family life it is very good for a husband to be attached to his wife, but it is not very good for spiritual advancement. Thus Kṛṣṇa consciousness must be established in every home. If a husband and wife are very much attached to one another in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they will both benefit because Kṛṣṇa is the center of their existence. Otherwise, if the husband is too much attached to his wife, he becomes a woman in his next life. The woman, being overly attached to her husband, becomes a man in her next life. Of course, it is an advantage for a woman to become a man, but it is not at all advantageous for the man to become a woman.
FAQs
This verse shows intense dependence and fear-based attachment—she mirrors his actions (eating, bathing) and becomes afraid when he is angry—highlighting how material relationships can bind the soul through control, fear, and identification.
In the narrative, he is illustrating her extreme devotion to him; in the allegory, it reflects the conditioned soul’s entanglement where one’s life becomes regulated by bodily identification and relational dependence.
Cultivate love without control or fear: maintain mutual respect and personal spiritual discipline, and redirect dependency toward devotion to Bhagavān rather than emotional bondage to another person.