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यथा सर्वगतं सौक्ष्म्यादाकाशं नोपलिप्यते।सर्वत्रावस्थितो देहे तथाऽऽत्मा नोपलिप्यते।।13.33।।

yathā sarva-gataṁ saukṣhmyād ākāśhaṁ nopalipyate sarvatrāvasthito dehe tathātmā nopalipyate

Sanskrit Chant Recitation
Chapter 13, Verse 33
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Scripture Translation Room

Sanskrit to English Translation

Translator:
As the all-pervading ether is not tainted, due to its subtlety, so the Self seated everywhere in the body is not tainted either.

A Reading - Rantideb

Why: as the all-pervading ether is not tainted, due to its subtlety, so the Self, present everywhere in the body, is not tainted, using ether or space as a natural image for something that can be present everywhere without being altered by what surrounds it.

In life: you can be fully present and engaged in a difficult environment without that environment fundamentally altering who you actually are underneath the engagement.

Teaching: the next time you're in a genuinely difficult environment, remind yourself of this specific image, space present everywhere without being altered by what fills it, and see if it helps you stay engaged without feeling fundamentally changed by the difficulty itself.

yathāas
sarva-gatamall-pervading
saukṣhmyātdue to subtlety
ākāśhamthe space
nanot
upalipyateis contaminated
sarvatraeverywhere
avasthitaḥsituated
dehethe body
tathāsimilarly
ātmāthe soul
nanot
upalipyateis contaminated

Deep Classical Commentary (Bhashya)

Author:
13.33 यथा as? सर्वगतम् the allpervading? सौक्ष्म्यात् because of its subtlety? आकाशम् ether? न not? उपलिप्यते is tainted? सर्वत्र everywhere? अवस्थितः seated? देहे in the body? तथा so? आत्मा the Self? न not? उपलिप्यते is tainted.Commentary Ether pervades everything. All are immersed in it. There is no point whereunto ether does not penetrate and pervade and yet it is not tainted by anything. Even so the Self pervades the whole body and the whole world. Being subtler than the body the Self is never tainted by it or anything else. It is unattached and actionless. It has no parts or limbs. So virtuous and vicious actions cannot contaminate the Self. It is ever pure and stainless.