60
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 7, Ch. 7]
understands this truth should not be very much anxious about the maintenance of his body. There is no possibility of maintaining the body permanently or eternally.  Antavanta ime dehā nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ . This is the statement of  Bhagavad-gītā  (2.18). The material body is  antavat  (perishable), but the soul within the body is eternal ( nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ ). Lord Viṣṇu and the individual souls, who are part and parcel of Him, are both eternal.  Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām . Lord Viṣṇu is the chief living being, whereas the individual living entities are parts of Lord Viṣṇu. All the various grades of bodies—from the gigantic universal body to the small body of an ant—are perishable, but the Supersoul and the soul, being equal in quality, both exist eternally. This is further explained in the next verses.
TEXTS 19–20
आत्मा नित्योऽव्ययः शुद्ध एकः क्षेत्रञ्च आश्रयः ।
अविक्रियः स्वदृग् हेतुर्व्यापकोऽसङ्ग्रहनावृतः ॥१९॥
एतैर्द्वादशभिर्विद्वानात्मनो लक्षणैः परैः ।
अहं ममेत्यसद्भावं देहादौ मोहजं त्यजेत् ॥२०॥
ātmā nityo 'vyayaḥ śuddha ekaḥ kṣetra-jña āśrayaḥ avikriyaḥ sva-drg hetur vyāpako 'sangy anāvṛtaḥ
etair dvādaśabhir vidvān ātmano lakṣaṇaiḥ paraiḥ ahaṁ mamety asad-bhāvaṁ dehādau mohajaṁ tyajet
ātmā —the spirit soul, the part of the Supreme Personality of God-head;  nityaḥ —without birth or death;  avyayaḥ —with no possibility of dwindling;  śuddhaḥ —without the material contamination of attachment and detachment;  ekaḥ —individual;  kṣetra-jñaḥ —who knows and is