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श्री
ह्रीं
क्लीं
गं
ऐं
क्रीं
हूं
सौं
दुं
ॐ तत् सत्
ॐ ऐं ह्रीं क्लीं चामुण्डायै विच्चे
या देवी सर्वभूतेषु शक्तिरूपेण संस्थिता
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः

Aligning Consciousness

Ch 2Verse 20
Adhyāya 2 Shloka 20

न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन् नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः | अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे || २० ||

na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin nāyaṃ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ | ajo nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṃ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre || 20 ||

"For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. He has not come into being, does not come into being, and will not come into being. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain."

Historical Context

The Direct Meaning

This is one of the most majestic and definitive verses in the Upanishads (it echoes the Katha Upanishad). Krishna defines the Ātman using profound negatives and absolutes. The soul is never born (na jāyate) and never dies (mriyate vā). It doesn't 'become' something. It is Aja (unborn), Nitya (eternal), Śāśvata (permanent), and Purāṇa (ancient/primeval). Because of these qualities, it is mathematically and logically impossible for the soul to be destroyed when the physical container (śarīre) is killed.

Translated from the original Sanskrit text

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