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Chapter 2 · Contents of the Gītā Summarized · 72 verses

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Soul & knowledgeChapter 2 · Contents of the Gītā Summarized
2.212.23

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 2.22

The eternal soul beyond bodily death

वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय

नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि ।

तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णा-

न्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही ॥ २२ ॥

vāsāṁsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya

navāni gṛhṇāti naro ’parāṇi

tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny

anyāni saṁyāti navāni dehī

Translation

As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

The Soul Changes Bodies

  1. 1The soul gives up old, useless bodies and accepts new ones, just as a person changes clothes.
  2. 2By the Supersoul’s grace, the soul moves to another body. The Supersoul fulfills the soul’s desires like a friend.
  3. 3Forgetting Kṛṣṇa as our master leads to changing bodies. Accepting His guidance frees us from sorrow.

Where we are

In the story

Chapter 2, Contents of the Gītā Summarized: the eternal soul beyond bodily death.

What it teaches

Theme summary

Discern the eternal self from the temporary.

2

Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Body

The body is compared to clothing changed by the soul.

Rebirth & bondage

The soul accepts another body as one changes garments.

3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 2.22 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to soul & knowledge?

Practice

Spend five minutes reflecting on what in you does not change.

4

Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 2.13The self endures bodily changeBG 13.2The body, its knower and the field of knowledgeBG 8.16Mortality, cosmic cycles and eternal destinationBG 13.22Prakṛti, puruṣa and conditioning

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

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Ask about BG 2.22 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.

Back to step 3The key ideasNext · Step 5 of 7 · 5 minLive the teachingsBring it into your day with a practice and a question, straight from Prabhupāda's purports.