तस्य च नित्यत्वात् ॥ १६ ॥
tasya ca nityatvāt || 16 ||
tasya—Its; ca—and; nityatvāt—on account of permanence.
16. And on account of its (soul’s) permanence (in the body it is the enjoyer, and not the gods).
The soul abides permanently in the body as the experiencer since it can be affected by good and evil and can experience pleasure and pain. It is not reasonable to think that in a body which is the result of the souls past actions, others, e.g. the gods, enjoy. The gods have glorious positions and would disdain such lowly enjoyments as can be had through the human body. It is the soul that is the enjoyer. Moreover, the connection between the organs and the soul is permanent. Vide Sruti text, “When it departs, the vital force follows; when the vital force departs, all other organs follow” (Brih. 4, 4. 2). The soul is the master, and is therefore the enjoyer, in spite of the fact that there are presiding deities over the senses.