Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 33
The Forest of Material Existence (Saṁsāra-vana) and the Delivering Path of Bharata’s Teachings
एवमध्वन्यवरुन्धानो मृत्युगजभयात्तमसि गिरिकन्दरप्राये ॥ ३३ ॥
evam adhvany avarundhāno mṛtyu-gaja-bhayāt tamasi giri-kandara-prāye.
Sa mundong materyal na ito, kapag nalimutan ng nakagapos na kaluluwa ang ugnayan niya sa Kataas-taasang Persona ng Diyos at hindi pinapansin ang kamalayang Kṛṣṇa, nalulubog siya sa iba’t ibang mapanlinlang at makasalanang gawain. Pagkaraan, dinaranas niya ang tatlong uri ng pagdurusa, at sa takot sa elepanteng kamatayan, nahuhulog siya sa dilim na gaya ng yungib sa bundok.
Everyone is afraid of death, and however strong a materialistic person may be, when there is disease and old age one must certainly accept death’s notice. The conditioned soul becomes very morose to receive notice of death. His fear is compared to the fear experienced upon entering a dark mountain cave, and death is compared to a great elephant.
FAQs
This verse depicts death as a powerful “elephant” that terrifies the conditioned soul, driving him into deeper ignorance (tamas) rather than toward spiritual shelter.
In Canto 5, Chapter 14’s allegory, the soul’s material journey becomes obstructed and fear-driven, and the “mountain-cave” image conveys entrapment—an increasingly inescapable condition of ignorance.
Instead of letting anxiety about death push you into distraction and darkness, take it as a prompt to seek clarity through sādhana—hearing sacred wisdom, cultivating devotion, and living with detachment from fleeting pleasures.