Smart Quote of the Day, April 30 2020
"Every one of us is thinking, 'I am this body' or 'This is my body,' but actually the truth is different. Our bodies are given to us by the supreme proprietor."
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This is from the Srimad-Bhagavatam 8.3.13
[This chapter of the Srimad-Bhagavatam is entitled "Gajendra's Prayers of Surrender." In this chapter, the King of the elephants, Gajendra, having been attacked by a crocodile, prayed to the Personality of Godhead for protection.]
TRANSLATION
I beg to offer my respectful obeisances unto You, who are the Supersoul, the superintendent of everything, and the witness of all that occurs. You are the Supreme Person, the origin of material nature and of the total material energy. You are also the owner of the material body. Therefore, You are the supreme complete. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You.
PURPORT (excerpt):
In Bhagavad-gita (13.3) the Lord says, ksetra-jñam capi mam viddhi sarva-ksetresu bharata: “O scion of Bharata, you should understand that I am also the knower in all bodies.”
Every one of us is thinking, “I am this body” or “This is my body,” but actually the truth is different. Our bodies are given to us by the supreme proprietor. The living entity, who is also ksetra jña, or the knower of the body, is not the body’s only proprietor; the actual proprietor of the body is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the supreme ksetra jña.
For example, we may rent and occupy a house, but actually the owner of the house is the landlord. Similarly, we may be allotted a certain type of body as a facility with which to enjoy this material world, but the actual proprietor of the body is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
He is called sarvadhyaksa because everything in the material world works under His supervision. This is confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (9.10), wherein the Lord says, mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sacaracaram: “This material nature, working under My direction, O son of Kunti, is producing all moving and unmoving beings.”
From prakrti, or material nature, come so many varieties of living entities, including aquatics, plants, trees, insects, birds, animals, human beings and demigods. Prakrti is the mother, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the father (aham bija-pradah pita).
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