Srimad Bhagavatam — Shashtha Skandha, Shloka 25
Nārada and Aṅgirā Instruct Citraketu: Impermanence, Ātma-Tattva, and Mantra-Upadeśa
अयं हि देहिनो देहो द्रव्यज्ञानक्रियात्मक: । देहिनो विविधक्लेशसन्तापकृदुदाहृत: ॥ २५ ॥
ayaṁ hi dehino deho dravya-jñāna-kriyātmakaḥ dehino vividha-kleśa- santāpa-kṛd udāhṛtaḥ
Ce corps de l’être vivant est fait d’éléments matériels, de sens de connaissance, de sens d’action et du mental. Par le mental, le jīva subit trois sortes d’afflictions—adhibhautika, adhidaivika et adhyātmika; ainsi ce corps est la source de toute misère.
In the Fifth Canto (5.5.4), while instructing his sons, Ṛṣabhadeva said, asann api kleśada āsa dehaḥ: the body, although temporary, is the cause of all the miseries of material existence. As already discussed in the previous verse, the entire material creation is based on mental concoction. The mind sometimes induces us to think that if we purchase an automobile we can enjoy the physical elements, such as earth, water, air and fire, combined in forms of iron, plastic, petrol and so on. Working with the five material elements ( pañca-bhūtas ), as well as with our five knowledge-gathering senses like the eyes, ears and tongue and our five active senses like the hands and legs, we become involved in the material condition. Thus we are subjected to the tribulations known as adhyātmika, adhidaivika and adhibhautika. The mind is the center because the mind creates all these things. As soon as the material object is struck, however, the mind is affected, and we suffer. For example, with the material elements, the working senses and the knowledge-gathering senses we create a very nice car, and when the car is accidentally smashed in a collision, the mind suffers, and through the mind the living entity suffers.
FAQs
This verse states that although the body is a functional material apparatus (made of elements, knowledge, and action), it becomes the cause of many miseries for the embodied soul, bringing repeated distress in worldly life.
Nārada instructed Citraketu to rise above grief and bodily identification. By understanding that the body inevitably generates suffering, Citraketu could cultivate detachment and turn toward spiritual realization and devotion.
Use the body responsibly as an instrument for dharma and bhakti, but avoid defining your identity by bodily conditions. This reduces anxiety, grief, and attachment, and supports steadiness in spiritual practice.