न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचि
नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूय: |
अजो नित्य: शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो
न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे || 20||
na jāyate mriyate vā kadāchin
nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ
ajo nityaḥ śhāśhvato ’yaṁ purāṇo
na hanyate hanyamāne śharīre
na jāyate—is not born; mriyate—dies; vā—or; kadāchit—at any time; na—not; ayam—this; bhūtvā—having once existed; bhavitā—will be; vā—or; na—not; bhūyaḥ—further; ajaḥ—unborn; nityaḥ—eternal; śhāśhvataḥ—immortal; ayam—this; purāṇaḥ—the ancient; na hanyate—is not destroyed; hanyamāne—is destroyed; śharīre—when the body
Translation:
Atma is not born, nor does it ever die; after having been it does not cease to be, unborn, eternal, changeless and ancient, it is not killed when the body is destroyed.
Commentary:
In the Katha Upanishad, there is a verse similar to this. This shows clearly that the Gita is the – essence of the Upanishads.
Though the body is destroyed, yet the all-pervading Atma never dies. It shows that Atma remains only as a witness to the modifications of the body like birth, youth, and death, and of the mind in the form of pain and pleasure. The disturbance of the storm clouds does not affect the sun or the sky through which they pass. Therefore man should not identify himself with the foul perishable body and the ever-functioning mind but should hold on to his identity with the Self. Supreme joy and courage are realised by the wise who are one with Atma. The fear of death is at once driven off by the knowledge that he is the immortal Atma.
Swami Vivekananda Says —
Now freedom is only possible when no external power can exert any influence, produce any change. Freedom is only possible to the being who is beyond all conditions, all laws, all bondages of cause and effect. In other words, the unchangeable alone can be free and, therefore, immortal. This Being, this Atman, this real Self of man, the free, the unchangeable is beyond all conditions, and as such, it has neither birth nor death. “Without birth or death, eternal, ever-existing is this soul of man.”[Source]
Question: What is the nature of Atma?
Answer: It has no birth or death. It is eternal, firm, and immovable. It is the ancient one. It exists when the body dies.
