116 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 7, Ch. 13

upddhavet—runs after; tatha—similarly; anyatra—somewhere else;
artha-drk—self-interested; svatah—in himself.

TRANSLATION

Just as a deer, because of ignorance, cannot see the water within
a well covered by grass, but runs after water elsewhere, the living
entity covered by the material body does not see the happiness
within himself, but runs after happiness in the material world.

PURPORT

This is an accurate example depicting how the living entity, because of
lack of knowledge, runs after happiness outside his own self. When one
understands his real identity as a spiritual being, he can understand the
supreme spiritual being, Krsna, and the real happiness exchanged be-
tween Krsna and one’s self. It is very interesting to note how this verse
points to the body’s growth from the spirit soul. The modern ma-
terialistic scientist thinks that life grows from matter, but actually the
fact is that matter grows from life. The life, or the spiritual soul, is com-
pared herein to water, from which clumps of matter grow in the form of
grass. One who is ignorant of scientific knowledge of the spirit soul does
not look inside the body to find happiness in the soul; instead, he goes
outside to search for happiness, just as a deer without knowledge of the
water beneath the grass goes out to the desert to find water. The Krsna
consciousness movement is trying to remove the ignorance of misled
human beings who are trying to find water outside the jurisdiction of
life. Raso vai sah, Raso ’ham apsu kaunteya. The taste of water is Krsna.
To quench one’s thirst, one must taste water by association with Krsna.
This is the Vedic injunction.

TEXT 30

cata: Batter: |
SACHA FAT ALT: HAL HAT 113 ol

dehadibhir daiva-tantrair

atmanah sukham ihatah
