Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 10 Chapter 1 Verse 38

Canto 10: The Summum Bonum | Chapter 1: The Advent of Lord Kṛṣṇa: Introduction

Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.1.38

mṛtyur janmavatāḿ vīra

dehena saha jāyate

adya vābda-śatānte vā

mṛtyur vai prāṇināḿ dhruvaḥ

SYNONYMS

mṛtyuḥ — death; janma-vatām — of the living entities who have taken birth; vīra — O great hero; dehena saha — along with the body; jāyate — is born (one who has taken birth is sure to die); adya — today; vā — either; abda-śata — of hundreds of years; ante — at the end; vā — or; mṛtyuḥ — death; vai — indeed; prāṇinām — for every living entity; dhruvaḥ — is assured.

TRANSLATION

O great hero, one who takes birth is sure to die, for death is born with the body. One may die today or after hundreds of years, but death is sure for every living entity.

PURPORT

Vasudeva wanted to impress upon Kaḿsa that although Kaḿsa feared dying and therefore wanted to kill even a woman, he could not avoid death. Death is sure. Why then should Kaḿsa do something that would be detrimental to his reputation and that of his family? As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (2.27):

jātasya hi dhruvo mṛtyur

dhruvaḿ janma mṛtasya ca

tasmād aparihārye 'rthe

na tvaḿ śocitum arhasi

"For one who has taken his birth, death is certain; and for one who is dead, birth is certain. Therefore, in the unavoidable discharge of your duty, you should not lament." One should not fear death. Rather, one should prepare oneself for the next birth. One should utilize one's time in this human form to end the process of birth and death. It is not that to save oneself from death one should entangle oneself in sinful activities. This is not good.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
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