Text 14]
Ideal Family Life
161
think of his wife's body as nothing but a lump of matter that will ultimately be transformed into small insects, stool or ashes. In different societies there are different ways of dealing with the human body at the time of the funeral ceremony. In some societies the body is given to the vultures to be eaten, and therefore the body ultimately turns to vulture stool. Sometimes the body is merely abandoned, and in that case the body is consumed by small insects. In some societies the body is immediately burned after death, and thus it becomes ashes. In any case, if one intelligently considers the constitution of the body and the soul beyond it, what is the value of the body?  Antavanta ime dehā nityasyoktāḥ śarīrīṇaḥ : the body may perish at any moment, but the soul is eternal. If one gives up attachment for the body and increases his attachment for the spirit soul, his life is successful. It is merely a matter of deliberation.
TEXT 14
सिद्धैर्वाचशिष्टार्थैः कल्पयेद् वृत्तिमात्मनः । शेषे स्वत्वं त्यजन्प्राज्ञः पदवीं महतामियात् ॥१४॥
siddhair yajñāvaśiṣṭārthaiḥ kalpayed vṛttim ātmanaḥ śeṣe svatvaṁ tyajan prājñaḥ padavīṁ mahatām iyāt
siddhaiḥ —things obtained by the grace of the Lord;  yajñā-avaśiṣṭa-arthaiḥ —things obtained after a sacrifice is offered to the Lord or after the recommended  pañca-sūnā yajña  is performed;  kalpayet —one should consider;  vṛttim —the means of livelihood;  ātmanaḥ —for the self;  śeṣe —at the end;  svatvam —so-called proprietorship over one's wife, children, home, business and so on;  tyajan —giving up;  prājñaḥ —those who are wise;  padavīm —the position;  mahatām —of the great personalities who are fully satisfied in spiritual consciousness;  iyāt —should achieve.
TRANSLATION
An intelligent person should be satisfied with eating prasāda [food offered to the Lord] or with performing the five different