Shloka 42
The Lord’s Supervision of Embodiment: Fetal Development, Womb-Suffering, and the Jīva’s Prayer (Garbha-stuti) — and the Trap of Māyā
तामात्मनो विजानीयात्पत्यपत्यगृहात्मकम् । दैवोपसादितं मृत्युं मृगयोर्गायनं यथा ॥ ४२ ॥
tām ātmano vijānīyāt paty-apatya-gṛhātmakam daivopasāditaṁ mṛtyuṁ mṛgayor gāyanaṁ yathā
Therefore a woman should know her husband, home, and children to be an arrangement of the Lord’s external energy leading her toward death—just as the hunter’s sweet song is death for the deer.
In these instructions of Lord Kapiladeva it is explained that not only is woman the gateway to hell for man, but man is also the gateway to hell for woman. It is a question of attachment. A man becomes attached to a woman because of her service, her beauty and many other assets, and similarly a woman becomes attached to a man for his giving her a nice place to live, ornaments, dress and children. It is a question of attachment for one another. As long as either is attached to the other for such material enjoyment, the woman is dangerous for the man, and the man is also dangerous for the woman. But if the attachment is transferred to Kṛṣṇa, both of them become Kṛṣṇa conscious, and then marriage is very nice. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī therefore recommends:
FAQs
This verse warns that mistaking the self to be husband-wife-children-home identity is a form of bondage; such attachment makes one vulnerable, and death arrives by destiny like a hunter’s song that attracts the deer.
The comparison shows how the conditioned soul, absorbed in pleasing and familiar sounds of worldly life, becomes unaware of impending danger—until death, arranged by providence, suddenly overtakes him.
Perform responsibilities with care but reduce possessiveness: remember the soul is distinct from roles, cultivate bhakti (hearing/chanting), and keep awareness of life’s impermanence so duty becomes service rather than identity.