Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 37
Guṇa-viveka, Haṁsa-gītā, and the Yoga that Cuts False Ego
देहोऽपि दैववशग: खलु कर्म यावत् स्वारम्भकं प्रतिसमीक्षत एव सासु: । तं सप्रपञ्चमधिरूढसमाधियोग: स्वाप्नं पुनर्न भजते प्रतिबुद्धवस्तु: ॥ ३७ ॥
deho ’pi daiva-vaśa-gaḥ khalu karma yāvat svārambhakaṁ pratisamīkṣata eva sāsuḥ taṁ sa-prapañcam adhirūḍha-samādhi-yogaḥ svāpnaṁ punar na bhajate pratibuddha-vastuḥ
The material body moves under the rule of supreme destiny and must therefore live with the senses and vital air as long as karma remains in force, undergoing its prārabdha. But the self-realized soul, awakened to the Absolute and firmly established in perfect samādhi-yoga, will never again submit to the body and its manifold manifestations, knowing them to be like a body seen in a dream.
Although Lord Kṛṣṇa recommended in the previous verse that a self-realized soul not give attention to the body, it is clear from the Lord’s statement here that one should not foolishly starve or injure the body, but should patiently wait until the chain of one’s previous fruitive work has completely exhausted itself. At that time the body will automatically die according to destiny. The following doubt may then arise: If a Kṛṣṇa conscious person pays proper attention to the maintenance of the body, is there danger of again becoming attached to it? Lord Kṛṣṇa here states that one who is highly elevated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, having understood Lord Kṛṣṇa to be the actual vastu, or reality, never again surrenders to the illusory identification with the material body, which is just like the body seen in a dream.
FAQs
This verse explains that as long as prior karma remains operative, the body—under providence—continues living and carrying out its habitual activities.
Krishna instructs Uddhava on liberation: even if the body continues by past karma, a realized soul established in samādhi no longer identifies with the world and thus is not bound.
Do your duties responsibly, but reduce obsession and anxiety by remembering life’s changing situations are temporary; cultivate steady remembrance of the Lord and inner awareness so you don’t get pulled into constant reactivity.