TEXT 17
aham mameti svikrtya
grhesu kumatir grhi
dadhyau pramadaya dino
viprayoga upasthite
SYNONYMS
ahamI; mamamine; itithus; svi-krtyaaccepting; grhesuin the home; ku-matihwhose mind is full of obnoxious thoughts; grhithe householder; dadhyauturns his attention to; pramadayawith his wife; dinahvery poor; viprayogewhen separation; upasthiteoccurred.
TRANSLATION
King Puranjana was overly attached to his family and conceptions of I and mine. Because he was overly attracted to his wife, he was already quite poverty-stricken. At the time of separation, he became very sorry.
PURPORT
It is clear in this verse that at the time of death thoughts of material enjoyment do not go away. This indicates that the living entity, the soul, is carried by the subtle bodymind, intelligence and ego. Due to false ego, the living entity still wants to enjoy the material world, and for want of material enjoyment he becomes sorry or sad. He still makes intellectual plans to further his existence, and therefore, although he gives up the gross body, he is carried by the subtle body to another gross body. The transmigration of the subtle body is never visible to material eyes; therefore when one gives up the gross body, we think that he is finished. Plans for material enjoyment are made by the subtle body, and the gross body is the instrument for enjoying these plans. Thus the gross body can be compared to the wife, for the wife is the agent for all kinds of sense gratification. Because of long association with the gross body, the living entity becomes very sad to be separated from it. The mental activity of the living entity obliges him to accept another gross body and continue his material existence.
The Sanskrit word stri means expansion. Through the wife one expands his various objects of attractionsons, daughters, grandsons and so on. Attachment to family members becomes very prominent at the time of death. One often sees that just before leaving his body a man may call for his beloved son to give him charge of his wife and other paraphernalia. He may say, My dear boy, I am being forced to leave. Please take charge of the family affairs. He speaks in this way, not even knowing his destination.

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