one ten-thousandth part of
the upper portion of the hair point. The symptom of the soul's presence is
perceived as individual consciousness. Without Soul, the bodies are dead
Srimad Bhagavad Gita As It Is, Chapter 2, TEXT 17:
avināśi—imperishable;
tu—but;
tat—that;
viddhi—know
it; yena—by
whom; sarvam—all
of the body; idam—this; tatam—widespread;
vināśam—destruction;
avyayasya—of
the imperishable; asya—of it; na kaścit—no
one; kartum—to
do; arhati—able.
Know that
which pervades the entire body is indestructible. No one is able to destroy the
imperishable soul.
This
verse more clearly explains the real nature of the soul, which is spread all
over the body. Anyone can understand what is spread all over the body: it is
consciousness. Everyone is conscious of the pains and pleasures of the body in
part or as a whole. This spreading of consciousness is limited within one's own
body. The pains and pleasures of one body are unknown to another. Therefore,
each and every body is the embodiment of an individual soul, and the symptom of
the soul's presence is perceived as individual consciousness. This soul is
described as one ten-thousandth part of the upper portion of the hair point in
size. The Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad confirms this:
"When
the upper point of a hair is divided into one hundred parts and again each of
such parts is further divided into one hundred parts, each such part is the
measurement of the dimension of the spirit soul." (Svet. 5.9) Similarly,
in the Bhāgavatam the same version is stated:
"There
are innumerable particles of spiritual atoms, which are measured as one
ten-thousandth of the upper portion of the hair."
Therefore,
the individual particle of spirit soul is a spiritual atom smaller than the
material atoms, and such atoms are innumerable. This very small spiritual spark
is the basic principle of the material body, and the influence of such a
spiritual spark is spread all over the body as the influence of the active
principle of some medicine spreads throughout the body. This current of the
spirit soul is felt all over the body as consciousness, and that is the proof
of the presence of the soul. Any layman can understand that the material body
minus consciousness is a dead body, and this consciousness cannot be revived in
the body by any means of material administration. Therefore, consciousness is
not due to any amount of material combination, but to the spirit soul. In the
Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad the measurement of the atomic spirit
soul is further explained:
eṣo
'ṇurātmā cetasā veditavyo
yasmin prāṇaḥ pañcadhā saṁviveśa
prāṇaiś cittaṁ sarvam otam prajānāṁ
yasmin viśuddhe vibhavaty eṣa ātmā.
yasmin prāṇaḥ pañcadhā saṁviveśa
prāṇaiś cittaṁ sarvam otam prajānāṁ
yasmin viśuddhe vibhavaty eṣa ātmā.
"The
soul is atomic in size and can be perceived by perfect intelligence. This
atomic soul is floating in the five kinds of air [prāṇa,
apāna,
vyāna, samāna
and udāna],
is situated within the heart, and spreads its influence all over the body of
the embodied living entities. When the soul is purified from the contamination
of the five kinds of material air, its spiritual influence is exhibited."
(Muṇḍ. 3.1.9)
The haṭha-yoga
system is meant for controlling the five kinds of air encircling the pure soul
by different kinds of sitting postures—not for any material profit, but for
liberation of the minute soul from the entanglement of the material atmosphere.
So the
constitution of the atomic soul is admitted in all Vedic literatures, and it is
also actually felt in the practical experience of any sane man. Only the insane
man can think of this atomic soul as all-pervading Viṣṇu-tattva.
The
influence of the atomic soul can be spread all over a particular body.
According to the Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad, this atomic soul is situated in the
heart of every living entity, and because the measurement of the atomic soul is
beyond the power of appreciation of the material scientists, some of them
assert foolishly that there is no soul. The individual atomic soul is
definitely there in the heart along with the Supersoul, and thus all the
energies of bodily movement are emanating from this part of the body. The
corpuscles which carry the oxygen from the lungs gather energy from the soul.
When the soul passes away from this position, activity of the blood, generating
fusion, ceases. Medical science accepts the importance of the red corpuscles,
but it cannot ascertain that the source of the energy is the soul. Medical
science, however, does admit that the heart is the seat of all energies of the
body.
Such
atomic particles of the spirit whole are compared to the sunshine molecules. In
the sunshine there are innumerable radiant molecules. Similarly, the fragmental
parts of the Supreme Lord are atomic sparks of the rays of the Supreme Lord, called
by the name prabhā or superior energy. Neither Vedic
knowledge nor modern science denies the existence of the spirit soul in the
body, and the science of the soul is explicitly described in the Bhagavad-gītā
by the Personality of Godhead Himself.
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