SB 11.23.51 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

दु:खस्य हेतुर्यदि देवतास्तु किमात्मनस्तत्र विकारयोस्तत् । यदङ्गमङ्गेन निहन्यते क्व‍‍चित् क्रुध्येत कस्मै पुरुष: स्वदेहे ॥ ५१ ॥

Verse text

duḥkhasya hetur yadi devatās tu kim ātmanas tatra vikārayos tat yad aṅgam aṅgena nihanyate kvacit krudhyeta kasmai puruṣaḥ sva-dehe

Synonyms

duḥkhasya — of suffering ; hetuḥ — the cause ; yadi — if ; devatāḥ — the demigods (who rule over the different senses within the body) ; tu — but ; kim — what ; ātmanaḥ — for the soul ; tatra — in that connection ; vikārayoḥ — which pertain to the transformable (senses and their deities) ; tat — that (acting and being acted upon) ; yat — when ; aṅgam — a limb ; aṅgena — by another limb ; nihanyate — is hurt ; kvacit — ever ; krudhyeta — should become angry ; kasmai — at whom ; puruṣaḥ — the living entity ; sva — dehe — within his own body .

Translation

If you say that the demigods who rule the bodily senses cause suffering, still, how can such suffering apply to the spirit soul? This acting and being acted upon are merely interactions of the changeable senses and their presiding deities. When one limb of the body attacks another, with whom can the person in that body be angry?

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

If you say that the devatās who rule the bodily senses cause suffering, still, what role does the ātmā have, since two devatās become the causes and objects of infliction? Since the devatās operate all the limbs in all bodies, when one limb of the body attacks another limb in the same body, with whom can the person in that body be angry? If devatās are the cause suffering and happiness, where is the jīva’s role in this proposition, since the two devatās, who are causes of transformation or suffering (vikārayoḥ) cause the suffering? If your mouth is struck by someone’s hand, you can curse the hand “Become infected with white leprosy.” This would mean that there should be suffering for the devatās of the mouth and hand, Agni and Indra, not for the jīva. Because the devatās are the same for all bodies, one should not become angry with them. An example of one’s own body is given. When a limb like the mouth is attacked by a limb like the hand with Indra as its deity in the same body, how can one become angry at Indra who is present in all bodies? Furthermore the body itself has the earth as its presiding deity. This was mentioned in the previous verse with the word bhaumayoḥ.

Purport

The brāhmaṇa is elaborately explaining the condition of self-realization, in which one understands oneself to be totally distinct from the material body and mind and the demigods who control them. By cultivating bodily happiness we are forced to accept bodily pain. Foolish conditioned souls endeavor to eliminate distress and enjoy happiness, but material happiness and distress are two sides of the same coin. One cannot relish bodily happiness without identifying oneself as the body. But as soon as such identification occurs, one is harassed by the innumerable pains and sufferings also inevitably present within the same body. Bodily happiness and distress are administered by the demigods, who can never be brought under our control; thus one remains subject to the whims of providence on the material platform. If, however, one surrenders to the Personality of Godhead, Lord Kṛṣṇa, the reservoir of all pleasure, one can reach the spiritual platform, where transcendental bliss enlivens the liberated souls without any interrupting anxiety or unhappiness.