Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 50
Sāṅkhya Enumeration of Tattvas, Distinction of Puruṣa–Prakṛti, and the Mechanics of Birth and Death
तरोर्बीजविपाकाभ्यां यो विद्वाञ्जन्मसंयमौ । तरोर्विलक्षणो द्रष्टा एवं द्रष्टा तनो: पृथक् ॥ ५० ॥
taror bīja-vipākābhyāṁ yo vidvāñ janma-saṁyamau taror vilakṣaṇo draṣṭā evaṁ draṣṭā tanoḥ pṛthak
智者观见树由种子而生、成熟后终归枯亡，便作为与树不同的见证者而独立；同样，见证物质之身生与死的觉知者，也与此身相离。
As a reference to trees, vipāka indicates the final transformation called death. In reference to other types of plants such as rice, vipāka indicates the stage of maturity, in which death also occurs. Thus by common observation one can understand the actual position of one’s material body and one’s own position as the transcendental observer.
FAQs
This verse says the true seer (ātman) is distinct from the body, just as a witness is distinct from a tree whose birth and end occur through material causes like seed and ripening.
In the Uddhava Gita, Krishna instructs Uddhava in liberation-focused wisdom, emphasizing discrimination between the self (seer) and material nature (body) to cultivate detachment and freedom from fear of birth and death.
Practice observing thoughts, emotions, and bodily changes as events in nature, while remembering “I am the seer, not the changing body,” which supports steadiness, reduced anxiety, and spiritual focus.