Srimad Bhagavatam — Saptama Skandha, Shloka 37
Gṛhastha-Dharma: How a Householder Attains Liberation by Offering All to Vāsudeva
पुराण्यनेन सृष्टानि नृतिर्यगृषिदेवता: । शेते जीवेन रूपेण पुरेषु पुरुषो ह्यसौ ॥ ३७ ॥
purāṇy anena sṛṣṭāni nṛ-tiryag-ṛṣi-devatāḥ śete jīvena rūpeṇa pureṣu puruṣo hy asau
The Supreme Personality of Godhead created many abodes in the form of bodies—of humans, animals, birds, sages, and demigods. Within all these innumerable forms, He dwells with the living being as Paramātmā; thus He is known as the puruṣāvatāra.
In Bhagavad-gītā (18.61) it is said:
FAQs
This verse explains that the Supreme Person creates the bodies of all species and then dwells within them—present as the indwelling reality associated with the living being, residing in the 'city' of the body.
Because the body is like a residence with many 'gates' and functions; the jīva lives there while the Supreme Person remains present within, witnessing and sustaining life.
See every being as inhabited by the Lord’s presence; this fosters humility, nonviolence, and devotion—treating the body as a temporary dwelling and focusing on spiritual practice.