Verse 2.13
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा। तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति॥
Transliteration (IAST)
dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati
Word-by-Word Meanings
dehinaḥ-of the embodied soul
dehe-in the body
kaumāram-childhood
yauvanam-youth
jarā-old age
dehāntara-prāptiḥ-attaining another body
dhīraḥ-the wise one
Translation
Just as the embodied soul continuously passes from childhood to youth to old age in this body, so too does it pass into another body at death. The wise person is not deluded by this.
Commentary
Krishna uses a brilliant analogy: just as we accept the continuous transformation of the body through life stages without considering it death, so too should we understand that the soul's transition to a new body at death is merely another change. This is the foundational argument for the doctrine of transmigration.
Themes
atmanjnanamoksha