Shloka 23
Dehānta (Cyavana) and Upapatti: Kāśyapa’s Questions and the Siddha’s Account of Death, Pain, and Karmic Re-embodiment
शरीरं च जहात्येवं निरुच्छवासश्व दृश्यते । स निरूष्मा निरुच्छवासो नि:श्रीको हतचेतन:
śarīraṃ ca jahāty evaṃ nirucchvāsaś ca dṛśyate | sa nirūṣmā nirucchvāso niḥśrīko hatacetanaḥ ||
इस प्रकार जीव शरीर को त्याग देता है और वह देह निःश्वास पड़ी हुई दिखाई देती है। वह उष्णता और श्वास से रहित, तेज से वंचित तथा चेतना से शून्य होकर केवल निर्जीव रूप मात्र रह जाती है।
सिद्ध उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the distinction between the living principle and the body: when life departs, the body becomes breathless, cold, and devoid of consciousness and luster. This supports dharmic reflection—reducing attachment, pride, and grief rooted in mere physicality.
A Siddha describes the observable signs of death: the body is abandoned, breath ceases, warmth disappears, radiance fades, and consciousness is no longer present—presented as a contemplative instruction within the Ashvamedhika Parva.