Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 15
The Forest of Material Existence (Saṁsāra-vana) and the Delivering Path of Bharata’s Teachings
क्वचिदासाद्य गृहं दाववत्प्रियार्थविधुरमसुखोदर्कं शोकाग्निना दह्यमानो भृशं निर्वेदमुपगच्छति ॥ १५ ॥
kvacid āsādya gṛhaṁ dāvavat priyārtha-vidhuram asukhodarkaṁ śokāgninā dahyamāno bhṛśaṁ nirvedam upagacchati.
Sometimes he finds household life to be like a blazing forest fire—devoid of cherished happiness and ending only in greater misery. Burned by the fire of lamentation, he falls into deep disillusionment. In home life there is nothing favorable for lasting happiness. Entangled there, he sometimes condemns himself as most unfortunate, and sometimes thinks he suffers because he performed no pious deeds in a former life.
In the Gurv-aṣṭaka, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has sung:
FAQs
This verse explains that material home life can burn like a forest fire—when one is separated from what is dear and when the inevitable outcome is misery—leading to grief and eventual disillusionment.
Because attachment in family life can suddenly intensify into suffering through loss, separation, and anxiety—burning the heart with lamentation—just as a forest fire consumes everything without warning.
Recognize that happiness based solely on changing relationships and possessions is unstable; cultivate devotion and spiritual practice so that inevitable losses do not consume the mind with grief, and let disillusionment mature into healthy detachment.